Hopeless Wanderer
by Invictus2013
Summary: After Doomsday, Rose Tyler is plagued with horrific nightmares and mysterious people speaking to her. When she notices the stars going out these people visit her and tell her that she has to bridge the gap between universe, but who are they and can they help her find the doctor again?
1. Prologue

Prologue

"_You heard my voice, I came out of the woods by choice"_

_- 'Hopeless Wanderer' Mumford and Sons_

"I guess this is fitting, Tony. Friday night and it's you and me here together at midnight," Rose mused as she held the toddler on her hip as she stood in front of the large bay windows of the Tyler Mansion. "Haven't had much of a life myself these past few years."

It was a true statement of fact, Rose sighed to herself. The past three years were complete chaos from the minute she was left standing in Torchwood Tower in Pete's World as the Doctor had called this reality. Chaos was her life now. As soon as they she had spoken with the Doctor last on Bad Wolf Bay in Norway her adventure truly began. Since then she was announced to the world as Pete Tyler's long lost daughter and heiress to the Vitex fortune. It wasn't much later though that both she and Mickey sought out Torchwood and began working there.

_Where else would a person who has traveled the universes work?_ Rose scoffed looking up at the stars as Tony rested his head on her shoulder looking out himself. She and Mickey worked on a team together with a number of others to handle all alien contact on parallel Earth in addition to dealing with any conflict that may arise. Rose found herself turning into a soldier more than when she had even run with the Doctor. Initially Pete had protested at the idea of his newfound daughter running around and combating aliens but after he began to oversee Torchwood and a group of aliens came in raising hell Rose had stepped in and with two sentences averted full on war by managing to calm the group down. Seeing how much Rose had actually picked up and learned in her travels, Pete had no choice but to let her join in and start working as an agent for the ever growing Torchwood.

This happened to be one of the few weekends she had decided to take off after a particular horrid encounter with a few rogue Racnoss in the sewer system. That whole mission had left Rose completely exhausted and ready to just sit down with a nice cuppa and a warm bath. Her mother however had other plans. The minute her mother had seen an opportunity to take a night to herself and Pete however she had begged her daughter to watch little Tony and so here they were. Rose couldn't complain in the end to a calm night of hanging with a two year old however oxymoronic that sounded. Tony was a great kid to be around however. He was hyper as any two year old could be, but what Rose loved most about her little brother was the wonder that he had about everything and anything. Rose would spend hours just sitting and talking and telling stories of the stars to her brother who soaked it all in before asking for more. He was definitely a way to keep her grounded in all of the craziness of her job.

"There are thousands of worlds out there Tony," Rose explained to her younger brother with a small smile on her face, memories flying through her head faster than she could rationally process and bringing emotions to the forefront. "I've seen so many of them and maybe someday soon you will too. I traveled with this man you see, a crazed man in a beautiful blue box that traveled through all of space and time."

Rose continued on telling Tony stories of how she had met her first Doctor who was all blue eyes and leather, stealing her heart and changing her life with the simple statement of 'run.' Slowly as her stories continued on she noted that Tony was starting to finally drift on her shoulder. She turned her head gently kissing the top of his head as she held him tight looking up at the stars. She relished in the fact that the stars were mostly the same here in this reality; there was some sort of comfort in being able to look up into the black sky and see the same stars and constellations that she had known her whole life with new ones added in. In her mind she envisioned all the planets she had visited, all the lives she had watched the Doctor save, and silently wondered how many of them were still safe and secure. Unfortunately she would never know without a way to travel into the stars.

When she felt Tony's breathing finally even out as his tiny hand clutched at her shirt, Rose allowed herself to relax and the tear to finally fall from the corner of her eye. Three years and she hadn't heard from the Doctor. '_I'm burning up a sun just to say goodbye,'_ he had said to her on that beach. Maybe things weren't just meant to be. Since her arrival, Rose had taken to finding all the differences between this world and her own. The one main difference she had discovered but loved were the new constellations that filled the sky. Mixed in with the fierce warrior Orion and the Great Bear of Ursa Major were others stories of samurais and tales she once regarded as bedtime stories appeared in the stars. Her favorite she had discovered were two clusters of stars that appeared overhead that represented Little Red Riding Hood and the Big, Bad Wolf. It seemed almost fitting that she found the most beauty in the cluster of stars that made up the wolf.

Ever since she had looked into the Time Vortex and become the Bad Wolf, her life had changed. The Doctor had hated to talk about him taking the Vortex from her and as a result having to regenerate, but Rose remembered enough to be able to piece it all together. She still had dreams of that day that haunted her at night, even more so since coming to this reality. The past few weeks her dreams had changed though. She had been in the field with her team tracking down a loose Silurian in the forests of Germany at the request of their government when Rose had her first nightmare. After that she had limited the amount of sleep, choosing to take longer shifts at watch enabling the others to sleep while they were hunting. Now that she was at home she was exhausted, but Tony wanted to stay up late it seemed. Rose wasn't complaining at all. The nightmares, these dreams were completely and utterly haunting. They made no sense and were just tearing her head apart.

Rose kissed Tony's head once more and made to turn towards the stairs so she could put him down when she noticed something strange. She looked up at the Wolf in the sky and noticed that it was different. The two stars at the end of the tail just disappeared. Rose looked at the sky closer until she shook her head. It had to be clouds or the sunlight or even her lack of sleep. She had to be imagining it; stars just didn't disappear normally. Rose watched a short time longer before she turned away. Enough of that nonsense. She couldn't really trust herself at the moment when she was running on as little sleep as she was at that moment.

Quietly she carried her little brother up the stairs to his bedroom where she set him down for the night. Watching him sleep in the dim light of his solar system mobile, Rose felt a brief pang of regret. She doubted she would ever have a normal life after meeting the Doctor. Rose turned and looked at the ceiling littered with the stick on glow-in-the-dark stars which she had silently named herself as she was arranging them in anticipation for baby Tony. Rose's life was anything but normal now as she worked for Torchwood but she found herself settling which scared her even more. There had to be something that she could do that would change this lull that her life was forced into ever sense she was stuck in this universe.

Someday she would see the stars once more. Someday she would defy the laws of physics and universe and see her Doctor again because nothing is impossible. _Someday…_


	2. Chapter One

Chapter One

"_Shelter also gave their shade_

_But in the dark I have no name."_

_- 'Hopeless Wanderer' Mumford and Sons_

It was chaos; a cacophony of colors, sounds, even smells that Rose could make no sense of as she fought to keep her head from spinning completely. She heard screams of pain, screams of horror, pleading from people asking for some savior to rescue them, and mixed in with all the helplessness were the sounds of evil laughter enjoying destruction, weaponry tearing apart at flesh and machinery, and demands for total surrender. None of the sounds lasted long enough for Rose to understand what was truly going on before new images of despair and horror flashed forward leaving her clawing for some escape from this hell. There was no consistent theme in these images beyond just suffering.

For weeks she had been plagued with these nightmares where Rose would watch people die and no one was spared. Images of children crying made her want to throw up at the idea that Tony could possibly suffer like they were. She watched as a darkness pushed and moved enveloping them all. No matter what she did she could never just wake up and instead she had to wait for the end. Luckily she always she knew it was coming to an end as she heard a voice speak as he always did.

_Soon My Wolf, soon enough you will understand. It's almost time._ With that last word, Rose shot up from where she was tangled in sheets and blankets on her bed at the Tyler Estate. Blood racing, sweat covering her body, and sheer panic sending adrenaline throughout her system, Rose turned to the clock beside her bed to find it was only five-thirty in the morning. She had only gotten Tony to bed four hours ago after he had awoken in the night. Letting herself flop back against the pillows once more Rose sighed heavily, staring up at the ceiling. The images constantly changed, but the voice was always the same; calling her his wolf as though it was her name. Immediately Rose was always thrown back to the idea of the Bad Wolf; words scattered through time that led her back to save her Doctor from impending doom. That one concept and idea spurned from taking in the Time Vortex and unfortunately leading to the Doctor's regeneration in order to save her.

_Blimey, I need a shower,_ Rose groaned as she began feeling the soaked sheets and shirt on her skin. Maybe a hot shower could help her clear her head from all this nonsense that these dreams always managed to spurn. She silently wondered whether she needed to take a break from work, dealing with all the alien nonsense in this parallel world; perhaps the constant reminder of what could have been and what now will never be was putting a bigger strain on her than she realized. Rose knew her mother wouldn't complain about her hanging around the mansion for a while for some bonding time rather than retiring to her flat outside of town. In fact, the more Rose thought over the idea the better it sounded with every passing minute. A calm opportunity to catch up on sleep should never be passed on…

"We have waited long enough. It is time to contact her and begin to set the events in motion before the damage is too severe," a woman stated firmly, her speech pattern exact in every word she said as though it were the eternal truth of life.

It had been quite some time since these six had last come together. Unfortunately the current risk associated with the entirety of reality as a whole was too great for them to ignore. The fabric of many universes were beginning to crumble creating a wide expanse of darkness across time and space itself. With the Universe facing such extreme peril, it seems fate had called the Guardians of Time together once more to take action in order to ensure the survival of existence itself. So here they sat in some semblance of existence: the White Guardian representing light and order, the Black Guardian representing darkness and chaos, the Crystal Guardian representing dream and fantasy, the Red Guardian representing justice and truth, the Azure Guardian representing equilibrium and balance, and finally, the Gold Guardian representing life and death itself. Together these six transcendental beings monitored all of time, acting only in extreme situations calling for their intervention as a whole; never hesitating to step forward and choose a Champion to act for their cause as they were about to do once more.

In one seat White sits cool, calm, and relaxed as he sits back in his seat merely observing the others. His right hand resting casually on the handle of a beautifully hand-crafted cane from the strong and long lasting Everwood trees of the Gamma Forests. His suit reflected not only his personality but his position as well; classically styled and white in color matching the facial hair in a perfectly styled goatee to perfect his image.

Across from him sat his opposite; his counterpart in everything that he stands for as the light. The Black Guardian wears his role on his face clear as ever; his expression as dark as the darkness and chaos that he stands for. His black suit and deep red tie and vest underneath are tightly tailored to his slim figure as his lines are as crisp and clear as the finely manicured and trimmed facial hair. Darkness isn't something he merely wears, but fills and emanates from him; permeating into the surrounding air and tending to drive those away from the impending pandemonium that is likely to result.

Red sat beside Black completely unfazed by his persona it seemed. In typically assumed role for justice throughout the ages she wore a robe that was maroon in color and hung from her body gracefully as her stature and tone while speaking conveying her power in the one thing that many lacked: truth. Her features were relatively plain and simple, yet still managing to come across as quite elegant. Long brown hair came down in strands to be braided and fall along one of her shoulders as she simply looked to her peers for a response.

Next to her sat the man who had strayed from his position more frequently than not as he got involved in the affairs of many and even crossed the Doctor's timeline far more times than he should have; Crystal who was known to the Doctor not as a true guardian but as the Celestial Toymaker using his powers of controlling dreams and fantasy to present individuals with a slew of imagined opportunity. They had met a few times before in the Doctor's earlier days, but since then Crystal managed to stop with his mingling and meddling in affairs; choosing to work more along the lines of his counterparts as he was meant to do.

The two remaining members, Gold and Azure, filled the remaining two seats at the table each wearing fitting attire for their position as well. Gold sat upright as her hair glistened in its own honey golden color itself. She wore a long white evening gown with a gold belt around it to match the jewelry she was so famous for loving and adoring. While she didn't quite wear her emotions or expressions on her sleeve, one could always tell when Gold would feel passionate on some topic or another as her eyes would blaze gold and her hair would shine and illuminate the area. It was almost reminiscent of the time vortex itself. Something their Wolf was quite aware of.

Azure on the other hand was dressed the most human of them all which was something the others, especially Black, would continuously comment on. He wore a suit like the others but was a simple blue with grey pinstripes with a bowler hat and pocket watch as suspenders adorned his suit looking ever the 1920's banker. He had always appreciated those times; 'simpler' he had called them where people appreciated elegance for what it was. More often than not he could be found sitting in a large leather chair in a smoke filled bar sipping on cognac and enjoying the smell of the cigars around him.

"It is still too soon," Red stated firmly. "We have to give them time to figure it out themselves."

"Even if the humans or the Wolf finds out that there is something to the stars disappearing, it is unlikely that she will even be able to realize that there is something grander at risk. How can a simple human know that the walls of reality are collapsing based on a few stars disappearing?" Black mocked with a scoff.

"As much as it pains me to say this," White sighed, his hand rocking his cane back and forth as his face was drawn tight in a near scowl, "he is correct. Even if she does discover the connection along with the others it will hurt everyone in the long run as it will take them time to develop the technology to even breach the void. We must make contact to start placing the Wolf on the right trail."

Azure leaned forward contemplating the words spoken by his peers as he slightly inclined his head, "There is a reasoning to both sides of the argument. However I am inclined to agree that contact should be made. We must be certain that it is carried out in the proper manner. The Wolf must not be told too much too soon."

"Then if the contact must be made," Red acquiesced reluctantly, "it should be done by no one other than you Azure. You can be the one to ensure the line is not crossed."

Crystal nodded, "What method will we utilize then? Conventional tricks won't work as we used to rely on in order to contact the Doctor in his older forms. I recommend we continue to speak to her in the dreamscape."

"And so it shall be done," Gold smiled. "We will make contact."

The nightmares continued to the point where Rose finally gave up on attempting to sleep. She would down caffeine with the goal of not having to go to sleep that night and just continued to put her effort more in her work. However while out on a mission with her team to try and track down an alien that was loose and killing people's pets, it finally hit her as she was walking down an alley behind Jake and stumbled down to a knee. She blinked a few times trying to clear the haze that appeared suddenly as her heart raced so fast she could feel her pulse racing beneath her skin.

"Oy, you alright?" Mickey asked from behind her worried.

Rose swallowed hard as she tried to keep her head from swimming as she opened her mouth to answer that she was fine but the words wouldn't come out. She looked up at Mickey and in that moment Jake was on the radio calling for the second team to continue pursuit. What they saw in her eyes was sending them into complete worry mode as Rose's eyes were glazed over and wide, her skin starting to drain of color and making her as pale as a ghost. Something was definitely wrong.

"Come on," Mickey said as he shouldered his gun before he bent down picking Rose up to her feet before swinging her arm around his shoulders. "We need to get you back to the car."

Rose couldn't argue as the sights around her started to fade into just a blaze of colors, like the ones that haunted her dreams. She heard the screams start in side her head, flashes of light as weapon blasts were fired at people that were only visible in her head while Mickey and Jake moved her to the truck where they instantly started driving back towards Torchwood. In the back Rose stared up at the ceiling willing herself not to fall asleep, but as her eyes drifted closed she saw the images flying forward.

_Don't fall asleep, don't fall asleep, don't fall asleep_, Rose mentally chanted, but soon enough her body was relaxing as she fell into unconsciousness and it was enough to make Rose whimper as she did so. At that sound Mickey and Jake exchanged a look via the rear view mirror and both were wearing the same panicked expression.

This was definitely not good. Pete and Jackie were going to kill them.


	3. Chapter Two

"_So leave that click in my head,_

_And I will remember the words that you said._

_Left a clouded mind and a heavy heart,_

_But I was sure we could see a new start."_

_- 'Hopeless Wanderer' Mumford and Sons_

As Rose fell into unconsciousness, the images flew forward at a rapid pace. People were running from an unseen enemy, the skies were dark and weapons were shooting down at cars and buildings and people blowing them up into nothingness, and all throughout this there were screams and pleading for help. Rose wanted to get rid of these images but the voice spoke earlier than usual as he said, '_You need to watch My Wolf. You need to understand what is at stake.'_ Rose just kept fighting her own mind to wake up however as the images moved forward, darkness moving in as it expanded across galaxies and Rose then watched as entire worlds were wipe out of existence with not even a semblance of hesitation.

"The darkness is coming," he said once more.

"The stars are going out," Rose replied in her dream, surprised by the fact that she could finally respond as she watched the chaos unfold. "I've seen it. The sky is all wrong, but it's not just here is it?"

He chuckled, still unseen to Rose, "Oh we have chosen you well My Wolf."

Rose grew more frustrated as she fought through the images once more before finally she materialized in her dream in a sitting room. She looked around the room finding only walls and no doors, but a couple chairs with a side table which had tea. Finally the mystery man appeared as he moved to take a seat in his blue outfit making Rose cock her head to the side. He looked like he was in the wrong place via a few decades, but there was something else to him that made Rose's skin tingle entirely. She had read in her travels and while at Torchwood of pollens that could induce dream states, aliens like Time Lords who were telepathic and could reach into your mind to make you hallucinate, and more stories just like that which should explain what was going on right now. None of those seemed to fit this man before her however.

"Who are you?" Rose asked simply.

"I am a Guardian my dear," Azure answered. "Please take a seat. We will be here for some time child and it would be best if you were to be comfortable."

"Where is this?" Rose questioned, moving to sit in the chair next to Azure as she looked at the man confused.

"We are in your dreamscape Wolf," Azure explained. "I am one of the six guardians and given the severity of the situation it was deemed that this would be the safest method to contact you. As a result, that is why I am here with the help of Crystal who specializes in dream and fantasy. I am the Guardian whose authority falls in line with equilibrium and balance. We needed to be certain that we do not reveal too much too soon, but to at least set you on the path you're meant to be on."

Rose nodded barely as her mind worked to process what she was being told, "Six Guardians. What are you? What alien race came up with that title?"

Azure flashed a serene smile to Rose which was slightly unsettling, "We are transcendental beings and our origin is not important. We exist primarily to bring balance to the Universe as a whole. As I said there are six of us and together we maintain that order."

"You've mentioned two and what they are in charge of. What do you all together oversee?" Rose wondered.

Azure nodded, "As I said I control equilibrium and balance, Crystal is in charge of dream and fantasy, Gold oversees life and death, White – order and light, Black – chaos and darkness, and Red is in charge of justice and truth."

Rose let her eyes narrow as she looked at Azure, "No solitary being should have the power to dictate life or death."

"That is why we exist in six-fold to work together to maintain that balance within the universe. Gold takes her duties quite seriously and is one of the advocates for why we are approaching you now to help stop the darkness," Azure replied.

_As if this wasn't as farfetched sounding already before he even began elaborating on that point_, Rose mentally mused. Either this was real or Rose definitely needed to get more sleep since this was a pretty elaborate hallucination her mind was bringing up.

"Why should I trust you?" Rose questioned.

"We have worked with someone who you consider a dear friend," Azure stated and Rose tensed. "I believe it was in one of his earlier forms. Yes I believe it was his fourth body or regeneration as you would call it."

"You know the Doctor," Rose said simply to the Guardian, her voice stunned.

Azure nodded, "Yes but that is not what is important. You have seen the images and you recognize that the darkness isn't just happening here. That is just a taste of what is to come if you cannot help to stop the darkness."

"It's happening in the other world as well," Rose surmised.

"Not just there My Wolf; the entirety of reality is at stake. The walls of reality are breaking down and collapsing," Azure explained.

Rose looked him over before turning her gaze away as she sat back in the chair, thinking everything through. There was no Doctor in this reality; there was no such thing as Time Lords or even Gallifrey from what they've gathered in their research. That meant that there was no hope in her current situation that someone, _anyone_, could have the power or knowledge to help stop this darkness. The one man who she knew would be able to help was completely inaccessible in an alternate world where it took a sun burning just to say goodbye. How would she be able to help these people or why would she need to? If she, a human _child_ as he called her, could figure out that the stars were going out why couldn't the Doctor?

"What do you need me to do then?" Rose asked finally.

Azure smiled, "You're going to find the Doctor and tell him."

Rose just stared at him in disbelief as she just chuckled at him, "I'm going to what now?"

* * *

Mickey watched as Rose fell unconscious in the back of the truck and he grew even more worried. She had looked like death warmed over the past few weeks and everyone saw it, but no one had the gall to mention something. Now she had collapsed and wasn't responding and Mickey was questioning whether or not he should have spoken up earlier. Rose shouldn't have been in the field, but she was so stubborn he doubted he would have been able to stop her. So much for hoping it was just a random alien flu or something that she would fight off in a week.

"Almost there," Jake stated as he continued driving. "How is she?"

"I can't get her to wake up," Mickey replied.

"She'll be fine. Rose is a fighter," Jake insisted as he sped up along the road.

They finally reached the Torchwood compound where they pulled up to an entrance where a team was waiting. Mickey helped move Rose out of the car onto the gurney and without even looking back he and Jake took off running with the medical team as they brought Rose deep into the depths of Torchwood. They were forced to the side as the medical team started trying to wake Rose up and find out what the hell had caused this. It didn't take long of course before Pete was at their sides.

"What happened?" Pete demanded simply.

"Don't know," Jake sighed. "We were just moving through trying to find that damned beast and then she tripped and started to zone out. By the time we started moving in the truck she was already passed out."

Two hours later, Mickey stood in the medical bay where Rose was laying down on a bed with an IV filtering something or another into her system and other monitors were attached to check her overall health. Doctors said exhaustion but everyone was confused by some readings and the fact that she couldn't wake up. Her brain waves were showing that she was working really hard at something, but they couldn't wake her up even with the assistance of drugs. It was as though something was making it so she could not wake up. Something was going on and no one had any answers and that was the most frustrating part of all.

"What are you doing Rose?" Mickey said softly with a shake of his head.

Exhaustion… if she had been dodging sleep and using stimulants to stay awake she should have said something to someone, but no one knew anything of what was going on in her life that would drive her to rely on such means to stay awake. Instead they were wondering what the underlying cause to this chaos was with no understanding. Something had driven her to push to her extreme limits and now she was paying the price it seemed as she was working through something in that head of hers. All that the team could do in the meantime was wait and there was nothing that they all hated more than waiting.

* * *

"Travel between the two universes is impossible," Rose insisted, getting fired up. "He said-"

"And normally it is," Azure cut her off with his calm voice that was almost frustrating Rose even more than she already was. "However as I said, the walls are collapsing and if you create the right tool it should work."

"The devices we used before," Rose stated trying to understand what he was going for.

"They won't work the same again. There are too many possibilities for you to travel through to now," Azure answered. "You'll have to develop something new and your family at Torchwood will help with that. You have the means to build it, Wolf, just set your mind to the project and you shall succeed."

This was getting to be a bit much. Rose was getting irritated and Azure's cool demeanor wasn't helping this situation at all. She just wanted a decent night's sleep and apparently his man and his cohorts in crime were the reason why she was continuously plagued with nightmares night after night. Even more so, they refused to call her by name instead of using some pet name from an incident that took her months to even remember ever happening.

"Why do you call me that?" Rose asked frustrated. "Why do you keep calling me Wolf? I'm not a damned animal."

"The Bad Wolf still runs within your veins; hiding in the depths of your mind reaching out to protect you even when you don't realize it. You are one of the children of time My Wolf, and you will be the savior of worlds should you succeed," Azure explained before he slightly inclined his head. "We must depart now, but we will converse more in the future. Begin the development of your device to reach across the void into the alternate dimensions Wolf. You must find the Doctor and warn him that the Darkness is coming. Only then will you save all of reality."

Before Rose could ask anything further, she opened her eyes and found herself staring up at bright lights making her wince. She groaned as her head started to pulse in pain and forced her to close her eyes as she heard people moving around. Nausea tore at her gut as the light burned through her head. She let out a groan of pain as she turned her head to the side, grimacing at the sickness she felt. This was brutal. She wanted to hit something or yell or even possibly rant for at the world for being too irritatingly cruel, but right now she could barely breathe without wanting to be sick. Apparently having some entity trample through her 'dreamscape' as he put it translated to an epic headache. Or maybe it was the hangover from not sleeping well for the past few weeks and then finally passing out. Either way Rose was frustrated.

"Glad to you could rejoin us," Mickey stated pointedly as he stepped beside her bed, waiting for her to get situated so that she could talk once more.

Rose sucked in a deep breath of air as she timidly reopened her eyes and found it easier to adjust as she turned to look at Mickey, "What?"

"You've been asleep for eighteen hours," Mickey replied simply. "Docs said that you haven't been sleeping and apparently drove yourself into extreme exhaustion. Care to explain why you didn't say anything to anyone?"

Rose swallowed hard as she mentally replayed everything that she had just been told, "It doesn't matter-"

"The hell it doesn't!" Mickey countered. "We were on a mission Rose! We could have died because you were to selfish not to-"

"We're in trouble," Rose cut him off. "We're in serious trouble Mickey."

Mickey let his eyes filter over her facial expression and sighed. He knew that tone and the look on her face was one that he also knew well. Just when he was fine with everything falling into a rhythm. Alien entity needed taking care of, their team would deploy, kick some ass, and come back to relax for a few days before the cycle began anew. Now he had a teammate and best friend who apparently didn't trust anyone enough to tell them that she was barely sleeping at night and just declared that his nice routine was about to get shaken up once more.

Looking at Rose's facial expression despite her pale pallor, Mickey knew something was seriously wrong as she said leading him to simply reply, "When aren't we?"


	4. Chapter Three

"_So when your hope's on fire_

_But you know your desire_

_Don't hold a glass over the flame."_

_- 'Hopeless Wanderer' Mumford and Sons_

So the forces gathered. Her close teammates and partners in crime stood with Pete waiting for an answer and explanation as to what trouble they were apparently in. However, Rose hesitated as she looked at Pete, Mickey, and Jake standing around her bed with their judgmental expressions. The doctor's diagnosis that she hadn't been sleeping was true and she could tell that they were silently furious with her for not saying anything. Deciding to bite the bullet, Rose sighed as she began to explain it all starting with the nightmares that had been plaguing her over the course of the past month and a half. Of course the three men instantly started protesting about how she should have told them leading to a thirty minute diversion of a conversation before Rose got back on topic of the impending doom that they were apparently facing.

"There was always a voice at the end," Rose continued to explain before she dove into talking about these Guardians after making the men swear to say nothing outside the room. Rose had explained that she was even doubtful, but once they all started discussing what she had been told they realized that there was actually quite a bit of evidence to back up the conversation with the Guardians. Beyond the brain waves and every other medical scan pointing to Rose in fact maybe conversing with a 'transcendental being,' there were news reports worldwide from astronomers of stars disappearing and luckily there were only a few at this moment, but the numbers were growing. Torchwood had heard these reports and even had a group of scientists looking into it, but they hadn't any inclination that it could be something serious; at least until now.

"What is causing it? Pete asked.

Rose shook her head, "He didn't say. He just said that the darkness is coming and that the walls are breaking down. If that manages to happen it's not just our world that's at stake is everyone and everything."

Jake sighed, "So what are we supposed to do? I mean there's only so much we can do against a wave of 'darkness' coming to suck us all up. We have no way of fighting the dark. We supposed to build a giant flashlight or something?"

Rose initially was tempted to laugh at the immediate image of a signal reminiscent of the bat-signal except with a TARDIS outline rather than a bat symbol that was conjured up at his comment; now was likely not the time for hilarity although she would revel in that image for a while once they left for sure.

"We need to bridge the gap between realities again," Rose replied as a simple explanation that made the group sigh.

Pete on the other hand cringed at that statement alone. When the ghosts were plaguing the world and the walls had crumbled once before they had spent hours and days and months and what seemed like ages working on that technology that barely let them slip between the two universes that led to Rose and Jackie being trapped here to begin with. Now they were going to have to redevelop the technology to be more powerful and more substantial in order to successfully identify and link the two universes together. Previously it had just been those two worlds, but now that it was multiple universes being breached Pete wondered if it would even be possible. Even still the work began. The group agreed that the information they had received was real enough and it was time to do something to stop the world from ending yet again. Just a different enemy in a new costume.

Pete designated a team to work on the design and research while also tagging Rose's team to assist as well. The first week was utter hell as the main conference room was packed filled with scientists tearing apart their dimension hopping devices earlier and trying to figure out how to build on that. The first decision they all made was that this dimension cannon would have to start out larger to launch whoever would be traveling through universes. From there they would be able to possibly develop the smaller devices once more if they managed to successfully filter through the infinite possibilities of universes and find the right Earth. That of course led to about 5 hours of depressing conversation about how statistically speaking it should be impossible for them to find Earth and how this was a lost cause before Pete had finally broken through the scientists' arguments to hammer the fact that this was their only chance.

The largest surprise to Jake, Pete, and Mickey was Rose during this whole situation. As they tore apart the smaller device and the massive whiteboards in the room began to take on very rough sketches of design, Rose's input was actually taken into consideration by the scientists. The three men watched as Rose openly discussed various aspects of temporal physics and inter-dimensional travel with grace and ease and left them stunned. Rose was able to point out various aspects that even the scientists hadn't considered but still enabled the team to work to create an efficient cannon to launch the person through; pulling out knowledge of theories, correcting on aspects of equations that needed to be considered, and other things out that left Mickey out of breath sometimes and in complete awe. It seemed the girl who hadn't even achieved her A-Levels had picked up a few things here and there all the same while traversing through time and space. Once that initial week was done, it was time to continue the brainstorming and start the development stage. They needed to start building models and figuring out where they would go from here.

As the research continued on, Rose's flat began to take on that of a crazed scientist as her living room and office were littered with papers, designs, equations, and textbooks galore on physics, space, space travel, and old Torchwood files on other races they had interacted with. Her sleep cycle took a hit as well as some nights she would find something and work endlessly for hours to see how she could make the science apply while others she would feel defeated and just go to bed early, choosing to curl up under her blankets and try to forget what was going on. Eventually the chaos began to show its benefits as the team gathered in the lab that would be the new home of what they had named the Dimension Cannon. The office on the side where Rose worked was an explosion of equations, mathematics, drawings, books, papers and more everywhere all throughout the office. The only thing that wasn't work related was a picture from a coloring book that Tony had done for her of a dinosaur that was dark blue. As promised, Rose had hung it on the wall surrounded by sketches of the cannon technology and math that was crazed. It at least served as a reminder for Rose to look at occasionally and refocus on the task rather than let herself get burdened by the task ahead.

Books were just stacked up in random piles around the room and it completely amazed Mickey as he sat with her one afternoon when he brought her lunch. As a trade-off for all the effort Rose was putting forth with the researchers, Mickey had found that she often 'forgot' to eat as well calling for mandatory lunches between the two and workouts with Jake in the afternoon to pull Rose from the project and letting her clear her head every now and then. Once that routine was established the boys found that Rose was much more relaxed and able to work through the problem at hand with more grace and ease. Rose was reading through a complex book on string theory when Mickey just had to shake his head at as he handed her the food.

"You know we're not going to get this thing working for a few months," Mickey commented.

Rose looked up at him confused, "Of course."

"So in the meantime you could do a couple things," Mickey continued vaguely. "I mean you're doing a lot of studying up on things right now-"

"Mickey what are you getting at?" Rose cut him off before he started rambling.

"I'm thinking that a good gift for your mom in the upcoming holidays might be for you to go back and get your A-Levels and get into school," Mickey smirked and Rose looked at him stunned. "Rose look at the books you're reading and the things you're doing with the team here. I don't know where you managed to pick this up but you could definitely get that done. Set yourself up for when this all blows over. You never know. You might surprise yourself. Think about it."

Mickey just shrugged and then headed out leaving her on her own to think about that. She looked at the book in her hands and the notes on the papers to her side with complex math on it. She never had thought of it that way. The next day she came in and found some paperwork for universities and testing in the maths and sciences and groaned at Mickey's meddling. After a couple more comments from him and Jake, she finally sat down one afternoon and read through the packets. She figured she would at least consider it. In the meantime, slowly the building process began and with that first piece of building taking place everyone suddenly had hope that perhaps this would work and perhaps they could stop the stars from going out.

That same night that the building began, Rose sat out on her porch looking up at the sky which still had a number of stars littering it, yet she knew that there were a few she wasn't going to get back unless she succeeded. She still had so many doubts about this whole project. She had yet to see the Guardian once more even though he had told her that she would be speaking with them again. It was nights like these that she felt even more lost than when she was left standing on that beach after goodbye. That feeling however pushes her to do more because she is going to see her Doctor once more. She has to or else all of reality will be at risk.

So research and work continued on while Rose secretly studied up and decided to take Mickey's advice to heart. Between research and work on the cannon, Rose managed to find some time to sneak off occasionally to classes at a nearby university after achieving academic qualifications in mathematics and physics. She was on her way to becoming a scientist like her teammates except in an official capacity. As for the Cannon, the crew manages to salvage some parts from various items in the Torchwood warehouse. The process of them slaving away went on for months until finally Rose was sitting in the empty lab looking at the cannon in anger, disappointment, and disbelief. Eight months, eight bloody months of work and double checking calculations and the damned thing won't work.

The cannon was finally completed and yet they can't get it to turn on. Rose sits there for majority of the night before locking herself in the office, silently wondering if she did in fact imagine it all. She couldn't have right?

_Soon My Wolf, soon you will see._

The voice filled Rose's head and she reacted the way anyone would: by reaching down and flipping her desk in frustration.

_I'm tired of waiting!_ Rose yelled in her head as she kicked the papers that fell to the floor. _The walls are-_

Rose stood up straight as she turned to the window where people were purposely not looking her way after hearing the crash. _When did they get here? _Rose wondered but then shook her head; that's not what she was focusing on. _The walls are collapsing_, she finished her earlier thought mentally. The walls were weakening and the stars were still going out. Maybe they weren't weak enough though. Last time it had taken a large Cybermen army to breach the void and tear it apart enough to allow the team to travel so perhaps something similar needed to happen. Rose went to the door of her office, throwing it open as she walked over to Jake who sat up from where his feet were kicked up.

"How fast are the stars going out?" Rose questioned simply.

Jake looked at her confused, "Just about one every week or so according to the reports but it's been getting worse. Over the past week we've gotten more reports of at least ten this time. Stephen over there has the statistics if you want exact numbers."

"What are you thinking?" Mickey asked pointedly.

"I'm thinking we just need to wait a little longer," Rose answered thinking as she looked at the cannon. "I think we need to wait it out."

So waiting they did. They attempted to fire up the cannon at least four times a day, but with no success over the next month researchers and developers were diverted back to their original projects. Rose managed to divert her attention to school work and in less than a year she was already on the fast track to receive a degree in physics; something she had still yet to inform her mother on. It was on Christmas Eve that Rose stood in the lab alone staring at the cannon as she found herself doing when she would lose focus. Ten months, eleven days, and oh – about nine hours or so since they started building the first component of this cannon which in all honesty shouldn't exist. They had gotten quite lucky in finding the various parts that they did.

Rose looked at the platform with all the wires and various aspects of it waiting for the person to stand on it and be launched into the void. Control stations were around there identifying breaches into other universes and numerous other things. It was quite a marvel in itself. From concept to actual design it was actually a marvel in itself. The idea was with the technology they had that the team would be able to isolate various universes and create a tracking system to identify and find the right one. So many of the team had heard stories of the Doctor and knew how important he was to stopping the darkness but the delay in this damned cannon working was causing even the most hopeful to start to doubt the whole project. Given the amount of time they were waiting, Rose even was starting to feel her hope fading away. It wasn't supposed to be easy, but at some point when there was so much risk it shouldn't be this hard either.

Rose just rested her hand on the cannon platform with a sigh. The rate that the stars were disappeared had increased so severely over the past few days and she had surely thought that was their problem. Now she was beginning to doubt herself even more so. Rose turned to walk out and head to her car in order to show up relatively on time to dinner with her parents and little Tony tonight when she heard a hum from behind her. Freezing in her stride, Rose slowly turned to see lights on the side of the dimension cannon starting to light up. The monitors on the control panels started going crazy as they were recording data and beginning to finally make the necessary calculations to identify potential universes out there for her to travel to. Everything was completely illuminated and going crazy. Her jaw dropped in complete awe. This couldn't be finally happening.

Rose watched for ten minutes, but the cannon didn't stop. It kept pushing data and with that Rose grabbed her phone calling Pete.

"'Rose! Where are you? Your mother-" Pete began until she cut him off.

"Pete it's working," Rose said breathlessly as she watched.

"What?" Pete replied, although in his gut he knew exactly what she was talking about.

"The cannon. It's finally online," Rose explained.

"Stay there. I'll get the team," Pete ordered before hanging up.

Thirty minutes later the room was filled with people still dressed for Christmas but watching amazed as the Cannon was in fact online. Christmas Eve was important to them all, but the project they had slaved on for almost a year was also very important to them as well. The universe was at stake here and now as they watched their baby do its work they were completely amazed. Mickey stood next to Rose, placing an arm around her shoulders as they watched the researchers work the systems.

"Cannon is successfully identifying potential dimensions to launch to," one researcher stated. "We already have twelve successful connections to reach out to."

Rose turned to her father and silently they communicated. This meant they needed to step up and try live trials. The walls were fracturing so severely now that the cannon was even a possibility and that meant danger was on the horizon. Pete knew he would be able to keep Rose at bay for a short amount of time with sending animals through until they had a successful retrieval technology built and tested, but it was only a matter of time before his daughter would be the one on the platform launching herself through the void. Pete used to think Jackie was joking when she would tell stories of Rose saving the world. 'Defender of Earth,' Jackie would say the Doctor called Rose. Pete now knew that wasn't completely true. Soon enough Rose would have a new name under her belt.

_Rose Tyler, Defender of the Universe._

Pete sighed; damn name had a ring to it.


	5. Chapter Four

"_Don't let your heart grow cold_

_I will call you by name_

_I will share your road."_

_- 'Hopeless Wanderer' Mumford and Sons_

It was only a couple weeks later that the entirety of the Dimension Cannon team was sitting down in the main conference room at Torchwood Tower once again to talk about where they stood on the project. The past two and a half weeks were filled with testing nonstop as they knew they needed to do. The tests at least had been a success so far with the team managing to send cats and mice through the void and successfully pull them back from their journeys relatively unscathed. It was safe to say the animals were less than happy and some were quite catatonic for a while afterwards, but those were understandable results. Animals likely could not understand the complexities of inter-dimension travel.

What brought the team together was that with those tests and trials being completed it was time to set up their game and complete their final test; sending a human through. However as far as that was concerned that was where things began to get difficult. It was only a matter of time before that final test took place and Rose finally made her first trip, and as such they were all gathered to finally war plan and ensure that everything was ready for Pete's approval not only as the director of Torchwood now but as Rose's father as well. Rose found solace in the crew she was surrounded with in that room that had worked endlessly already over the past few months to make this project even a reality with the hope of stopping the stars from going out. She had to smile as she spared a glance at Jake and Mickey sitting on the opposite side of the table; her partner's in crime over the years while working at Torchwood who had become her lifelines to sanity as well.

"So you can lock onto Earth," Pete stated, his voice sounding more exhausted than Rose had heard in quite some time; silently she wondered how long she had been ignoring the toll that this project was taking on him, and subsequently on her mother and Tony. Perhaps a visit was in order in the coming days.

"Yes, but the issue is finding the _right_ Earth," the lead scientist, a brilliant woman by the name of Toshiko Sato, better known at Tosh remarked. "By science alone there are an infinite number-"

"Yeah but the void's opened to it before so it's more likely than not we'd hit it earlier on than a million worlds out right?" Mickey asked getting looks. "Just sayin'."

"So I'll make more jumps until I find the right one," Rose piped up with a slight sigh as the room's gaze shifted onto her. "I knew we weren't going to hit it on the first try. That's a given. This isn't going to be easy and I think everyone here understands that basic fact. I'll do what we need to; the amount of trips isn't going to be an issue, but unless we at least try then we won't know what we're in for."

Pete leaned back in his chair at the head of the table as he looked at his daughter. He had only known her for a few years, but in the years he had seen her shine: leading a team against alien attacks, flourishing her vast knowledge of alien life to find the most diplomatic solutions for all parties involved in a number of situations, and still have time to make her little brother feel special. He trusted her if she insisted she could do this, but he knew there were risks. The only problem was even with those risks the ways that they would normally mitigate those risks wasn't possible with the trips across the void. Furthermore, their time was short. They really needed to start these trips as soon as possible.

"So how long will each jump be and how will we communicate?" Pete asked, getting back to the war gamming effort at hand.

"It will probably take at least eight to ten hours," Rose mused and Jake nodded. "Some worlds won't be as obvious as zeppelins in the sky."

"Some might be though in the wrong way," Mickey countered. "We need a way to pull you in case of an emergency."

"Time will have to be our only indication at this point until we can establish communication across the void," Tosh proffered and silence fell once more as everyone mulled over that statement.

Rose sighed before she looked at the team. Ultimately it would be her decision whether or not to go since she was the one who would make the travel. Granted, Pete would have to make the final decision of approval, but looking at her not-quite father's expression told her everything she needed to know. Rose was the one who would have to pull the trigger on this project. She had already learned much about this sort of thing from the Doctor in her times traveling with him that hadn't been discussed openly, but were engrained in her mind.

She would have to wear the same thing each time in case she popped across multiple times in a timeline by some mistake. Rose would not be able to use her name in case of another Rose Tyler being involved or being tied back to her at a different point in time. The complexity of the causal nexus in each world would completely tear apart what was left of the universe and the fabric of reality as it stood. Rose also knew that not every universe she would travel to would be as kind as the ones she was used to if you could consider them kind. Some would not have made it through some of the horrors and devastation she had fought with the Doctor to stop.

_But the stars are still going out_, Rose reminded herself and instantly with that phrase she was pulled back to the hellish dreams she had been experiencing and the contact by these mysterious beings that made her long for the Doctor to explain what was going on, yet she knew that even if she did find him that she couldn't bring it up. Rose had aged physically and mentally beyond that young girl she had been when ole leather, big ears and blue eyes had grabbed her hand and torn her out of her mediocre life. She had changed so much over these past years and in these past months alone had grown more mature than ever. She had invested so much in this project and the science surrounding it just as she had asked the others in this room to do themselves. It was time for her to step up when everyone needed her most.

"So let's stop talking it to death and try it," Rose sighed, finally being blunt where they needed it. "We can tear apart this operation to its very foundation but until we actually make an attempt we will never know. So what am I looking at and when do we want to do it?"

"The cannon will launch you through the rift into the void," Tosh stated matter-of-factly. "From there we have isolated a number of rifts in alternate universes that we will be shooting you towards. We don't know how you will get through the void itself or how it will work this time with the walls being as fragile as they are."

"So I'm just going to wing it the first time and then from there we adapt and overcome," Rose replied and Tosh nodded. "Lovely. Then I will go home and get some rest and then I'll be ready to go tomorrow."

She spoke in a definite tone as she looked Pete in the eyes and everyone turned to the boss to see what his reaction was as well. Pete was torn between the two worlds he fell into: the father and the head of Torchwood. The father in him, although he had only had Rose around in his life for these past few years, screamed at him to let someone else make the sacrifice and take on the risk, but he knew that it had to be Rose. Even Jackie in the long run knew it had to be Rose even though it tore her apart as well. The head of Torchwood in him knew as well that not only did it need to be Rose, but that this needed to be done in order to save their existence at all. The stars going out and the impending darkness weren't something that they could put off until evening tea was done. They needed to make moves on this now.

Pete sighed as he nodded, "Tomorrow we'll make our first launch. Everyone do what you must to finish up here tonight but get home and get some sleep. We report back to the lab at nine in the morning ready to go."

Nine. Rose had a time now. 0900 she would make her first trip to an alternate universe. She silently prayed that they would get it right on the first launch, but the rational part of her brain mused that it was likely statistically impossible that it would happen. Statistics… the mathematic driven part of her brain these past few months would remind her of the improbability, no impossibility of her succeeding in this endeavor. She knew she would make dozens upon dozens upon dozens of trips, but hoped that she would be successful before it was too late for everyone. She had to be. Rose drive home in silence that night to her flat where she grabbed a glass of wine even though she would be jumping tomorrow. Moving upstairs she quickly filled the bath with steaming water before sliding out of her clothes and sinking into the warm water.

Tomorrow she would be fumbling through the void once more. She barely remembered her last trip after all this time; all of it just a fleeting memory of coldness before being trapped here in this world apart from her Doctor. Rose sunk completely underwater in the bath enjoying the silence that came with it and the surrounding warmth. She really needed to try and forget about what she was going to do tomorrow but that was pretty damn impossible. When the water finally started to grow cold, Rose reluctantly slipped from the bath and into comfortable sweatpants and sweatshirt. She ended up siting on the couch finishing up her wine and trying not to think of what tomorrow would bring her when she finally drifted off into sleep.

For the first time in months, her dreams weren't plagued with horrible images, screams, and bright colors she had sadly grown accustomed to. In fact it was completely serene and peaceful as she found herself standing in tall grass in a field with warm sunlight shining down on her. She felt comfortable and relaxed, almost at peace in a way she couldn't remember the last time she had felt. _It was absolutely beautiful here_, Rose realized as she looked at the field of vibrant colors. The tall grass was an off color of green that when the sunlight hit it transformed into a radiant explosion of color. The sky boasted not one but two suns which hung nicely in the sky without becoming too overbearing. Rose was confused however at the extreme self-awareness she was experiencing at the moment which was uncommon for a dream. _What is going on?_

"It's not just a dream My Wolf," a female voice said amused. "Azure was quite right; you are a perceptive one. Definitely a trait lost to most humans I've noticed."

Rose turned around, her hands out at her side brushing the tall grass as she saw a woman not too far away from herself dressed in deep red robes, "Azure? The other Guardian I spoke with?"

Red nodded with a smile on her face, "Yes. He did inform you that we would seek you out once more to talk did he not?"

Rose nodded in reply herself, not wanting to speak as she looked the woman over. The maroon robes complimented the deep brunette hair she wore long in a tight braid with slight traces of red mixed in as well. She looked calm as she clasped her hands behind her back looking at Rose in almost amusement it seemed. _Justice and Truth_, Rose reminded herself, but that didn't explain why she was the one here at this time or why this location.

"What's the message of impending doom this time?" Rose questioned.

"Nothing that you do not already know Wolf," Red answered simply. "I am here to help you prepare for your first trip and to answer whatever questions you may have to the best of my ability."

"What's with the outfit?" Rose wondered.

Red smiled, "I am the Guardian in charge of truth and justice; the robes seemed quite fitting don't you think? Ask what you wish and know that what I say will not be a lie."

"Where is this?" Rose asked confused.

She knew that she had never been to this place before but it was completely beautiful. The fields extended on for ages it seemed, but there was a coolness in the air that when combined with the shining suns made it absolutely perfect on the skin. Remembering how bundled she had been when she had fallen asleep, Rose looked down to find that she was barefoot in the field, wearing a light sundress herself. Her own hair had been let loose from the pony tail she had been wearing to fall down in massive curls she usually spent hours taming. Although she should probably be tense and vigilant when dealing with an ancient species that was powerful to extend across time and space, Rose felt relaxed instead in their presence whenever she was speaking with one of them and knowing what she was doing tomorrow she was content with relaxing at the moment.

"These are the fields of Kormidor," Red explained. "I thought this may be relaxing for you while we conversed. I often find myself wandering in these fields when I am in need of moments of contemplation. Something about this place is so beautiful that sometimes I need to remind myself that such beauty exists despite the darkness I so frequently see."

"What should I expect while traveling the void?" Rose questioned as she began to get to business as she knew her time here would be short.

Red bowed her head slightly, "The void has many names. My people refer to it as the howling; others consider it hell itself."

"The Doctor said that he had trapped the Daleks and Cybermen in the void," Rose stated hesitating at the Guardian's description of where he had locked them away.

"It is a cold and empty place that still is so vast," Red continued with a nod. "You will have to fight to reach your destination because the void will want to keep you there. You must be the one who makes the initial trips until you identify the correct location Wolf. Until then the others won't have the ability to control themselves in the void and travel safely. It is only once you find the correct universe that you can successfully develop the transmat devices for the others."

"Why me? Why can I be the only one to travel?" Rose asked confused.

"Because you are the Bad Wolf," Red smiled as though it were simple. "You are special Rose Tyler and you don't even realize it yet. You had already done so many great things and that's only a small minuscule measure of what you will do not only for the universe but for your Doctor in the days to come. The Wolf within will keep you safe in your travels."

Rose sighed suddenly tired with all that she was hearing, "Once I make the trips how will I know when I have the right place? Everything I've read tells me that there are an infinite number of possibilities for me and that I shouldn't even be able to find the Doctor in the end."

"You have learned so much," Red mused. "Never thought with everything in your life that you would eventually master mechanical engineering and quantum physics did you My Wolf?"

Despite the situation Rose had to chuckle herself, "No. Not at all."

Red nodded with a smile still on her face, "Wolf, you are correct, but you have us. We cannot directly influence the outcomes that you will have but we can push you towards the right direction."

"So instead of six thousand hops maybe narrow it down to a hundred?" Rose asked hopefully and Red smiled in response. "Brilliant. Any tips for traveling?"

"Only what you already know Wolf," Red replied.

"Same clothes, don't give my name," Rose repeated and Red nodded. "A pseudonym then?"

Red smiled, "I believe that you may find Bad Wolf would work in many situations."

Rose chuckled in response, her mind remembering the words from her childhood: _Who's afraid of the big bad wolf?_ She felt her world starting to shift once more and made eye contact with Red whose expression told her everything she already knew. She would be safe in her travels, well as safe as anyone could be because even though the Guardians didn't directly interfere except where needed they would do what they could to protect their…

"What am I to you?" Rose asked suddenly realizing what her mind failed to come up with.

"You, My Wolf, you are our Champion, and our last hope," Red answered. "I will ensure you have a restful sleep Wolf. The Guardians will watch over you."

Before Rose could continue her mental thought process the world around her started to fade into blackness as her body fell into a deep, restful sleep. Hours later her alarm went off, waking her up and Rose stretched feeling relaxed. She reached over to her phone turning it off and sighed. Today was the day her world changed. It was time for her to pick her battle armor to go to war again.


	6. Chapter Five

A/N: This chapter has her first jump through the Dimension Cannon, but is sort of short so I apologize. The next chapters will get longer as we get to see more of what Rose manages to find in her trips. Hope I haven't lost too many of you in the meantime– Invictus

"_But hold me fast, hold me fast,_

_Cause I'm a hopeless wanderer._

_And hold me fast, hold me fast_

_Cause I'm a hopeless wanderer."_

_- 'Hopeless Wanderer' Mumford and Sons_

Rose showed up to the lab an hour early and found most of the team there already as well, unable to stay away given the importance of what they were going to do that morning. She kicked back in a corner with her feet up on a table as she watched the people move around checking and rechecking and checking once more the readings on the machines and ensuring the wiring was in place to succeed. She listened as some of the technicians discussed the place they had selected for the first launch. Identified clear enough as Earth, from their readings they estimated it was around the correct time that they were hoping for (essentially the current date in the alternate universe). Rose had to smile at the passion and intensity that these workers were pushing into their work to ensure that she succeeded.

"Rest okay?" Mickey asked stepping beside her.

"One of the best night sleep in months," Rose answered honestly.

Mickey scoffed in response, "I couldn't catch a wink."

Rose snorted, mentally thinking of a retort about finding himself as a Champion for some crazed Guardians, but decided against bringing that up at the moment. That whole situation was odd enough for her to wrap her head around that she didn't want to detract from what was going to happen in a matter of minutes and seconds compared to the months and days it had been so long ago. They had worked so long on this project that it was almost sad to think about how much this project had taken over her life. Mentally Rose made a promise, that between hops she would make sure to see her little brother a few more times since she never knew what may happen during her trips. Her family had definitely taken the brunt of her negligence over the past few months as she spent most of her time away from Torchwood still doing research and calculations to try and make this work.

She had already taken some precautions a month ago and had written letters for everyone should she not make it back as planned during one of these dimension hops. Working for Torchwood on crazed missions had taught her that anything could happen. Living and running with the Doctor also taught her that sometimes not everyone makes it back no matter how tragic it may be. It was an unfortunate reality that Rose had to recognize even if she did have transcendental beings helping her out on her journey. _One cannot always win at everything._ Rose watched as Jake showed up, wolfing down a donut as he held a box filled with others in his opposite hand. He dropped the box on the table making Mickey groan happily as he tore into the box with vigor. She couldn't help but smile at the sight of Jake with powdered sugar on his mouth as he looked utterly happy and amped up ready to go.

"Morning," Jake grinned eyes wide in happiness. "Ready to get shot through a hole of reality in a shit storm?"

Mickey glared at Jake about to tell him off when Rose had to laugh. These were definitely her boys who made everything right at the end of the day. They had early on in this project gone out drinking where Rose had to sit through the boys detailing how they would rather be the ones to make the early hops, but Rose explained that it was impossible for them to at first. Even still fueled with the power of hard liquor they tried anyway to argue their point. Coming up with crazed stories of how they'd travel through the void together as the three musketeers to save the world. The one that Jake proposed of him riding on Rose's back clinging to her like a monkey still made her laugh to imagine. They had tried it on the way home from the bar before taking a tumble off a curb and nearly killing Jake there. Ever since Pete had found out that Jake needed stitches from that drunken endeavor they weren't allowed to go out without one of them being a designated walker.

Even with all their brainstorming, both sober and drunk, here the three amigos sat ready to go, but only Rose would be making this first trip. Finally the rest of the team showed up and along with them was Pete who looked tired himself. Rose gave her father a sympathetic look. Who knows what her mother had done to him last night while they were both likely worried about what today would bring. The team as a whole walked through the procedures once more and the final decision was made to make this trip five hours rather than the longer time given that this would be Rose's first time traveling and god knows how she was going to react to the dimension cannon. As the conversation continued on, Rose zoned out thinking about what she would need to do once she had successfully made the hop.

This morning she had taken her time to consider her armor for the battle before her and finally made a decision to go with what she was most comfortable in and what fit her the most. She wore black slacks and a simple purple t-shirt with a dark blue leather jacket over the top. She would be able to run in this as she had done before at the Doctor's side and should survive whatever climate she comes across. Despite all that was about to happen Rose felt a calming sensation fall over her as she took in a deep breath and relaxed. She would be okay; she may get hurt or encounter craziness along the way, but in the long run she would be okay. She had to be because if she wasn't then no one would be, which to put it quite simply was not acceptable in the slightest. Rose refused to settle for failure because failure was not an option. If she failed then they all would have failed and that was a horrifying ending that Rose unfortunately knew from her dreams.

"Are we ready then?" Pete asked, getting Rose's attention as she watched the team nod silently.

Rose grinned surprising everyone, "Right! Fantastic! Let us get to it then!"

Rose hopped up to her feet clapping her hands together as she moved towards the platform in a manner that reminded Mickey very much so as the man she was trying to track down. The rest of team began to take their places at a slightly slower rate, but fifteen minutes later Rose was stepping onto the platform with a deep breath. _You have to remember to fight; you have the strength within you Wolf_, a familiar voice said in her head and Rose smiled just barely to herself as Red's voice reminded her of what she had to do even though she really did know. Normally one might think they were crazy if they were hearing and seeing people who no one else did, but rather than thinking that way Rose felt comforted. It was finally time.

"Are you ready?" Pete asked one last time as he stood with Jake and Mickey looking at Rose.

"Ready as I'll ever be. Five hours?" Rose replied as she set her watch at Pete's nod. "See you then."

Then the button was hit and they watched as a flash of electricity erupted from the platform and wind blew around before nothing was left standing there. For Rose however it wasn't as clean. The void was so dark and so cold that Rose thought she was instantly about to freeze. Her body was hurtling around openness and tearing at her body trying to take everything from her and she had no idea how to fight it off beyond reaching and clawing for everything. Her mind was racing and she knew she had to search for the opening. Finally she continued fighting through the darkness as she felt a gap ahead that she had to reach. _Fight, fight, fight, fight, _her brain chanted as she pushed her way through. Rose continued her fight as she felt her body weakening until she found herself towards where the gap was and she came sprinting out of it in a storm of wind.

Slowing to a stop she bent over to catch her breath, a hand bracing against the alley as she took a deep breath to fight off the nausea rising in her throat. Rose looked up at the sky and saw normal clouds and normal blue and a normal sun. She looked around and found buildings which looked normal to her as well, but for some reason she felt off. After a few minutes Rose stood up straight and finally was able to move without feeling as though she had just gone a hundred rounds on a carnival ride. Stepping out from the alley, Rose was instantly shocked by what she saw. Well, this was definitely not the Earth she was searching for.

Everyone was happy which meant that this was an amicable situation it seemed as humans shared the world with lizard people. _Silurians_, Rose chided herself as she watched them move around in the residential area which was a mix of typical human housing and construction along with the Silurian residences mixed in. Rose was quite impressed that they were able to work together so peacefully. Rose continued her stroll through the residential area towards the shopping areas with stores for both species mixed in it seemed. Rose passed a few younger children who were hanging out with friends of the opposite species as they laughed and joked.

_Harmony between species on Earth… Never thought that would happen, _Rose mused.

She continued walking around and observing until she found a park. She sat on a bench watching children play and relaxed. Her first trip was a relative success and she didn't die. It was a truly beautiful sight Rose mused to see a world where people and beings were just so happy to be with each other. So many times Rose had seen this sort of interaction go wrong and as she watched a Silurian child play tag with a human child she let a tear fall down her cheek. This was a world filled with beauty in ways many couldn't understand even if it was the wrong world. The idea of these people being swept away into the impending, looming darkness just horrified Rose down to her bones. She couldn't let that happen to these people.

Rose suddenly felt a tug at her gut and moved immediately off to someplace hidden when she felt the electricity crackling at her skin. Looking at her watch, Rose was confused as she saw how much time had passed. However, before she could really think about it Rose felt her body get launched once more into the void where she fought around until she found herself tumbling and slowing from a run down onto the dimension cannon platform where the team was waiting. The room was completely silent as Rose swallowed the nausea and stood up straight looking at everyone around her. Rose swore she could hear their individual hearts beating as she looked at every person there who was waiting for anything she could possibly offer them.

"Okay so there were freaking lizards living with humans. I mean on the same streets and everything. Put that one in the big no column," Rose declared simply and with that the room lightened as people smiled and the team started making their notes and necessary adjustments as Rose slowly walked over to where Mickey, Jake, and Pete were all standing. "That wasn't five hours."

"Yeah it was," Mickey replied nodding to the clock which Rose turned to.

She held up her watch which she stopped as she landed here, "Time's slower there. We'll have to adjust a bit. Five hours here was only two and a half there. Barely made it downtown to look around and watch what was going on before you all pulled me. Now that I think about it time runs faster here than it does back in the Earth we're trying to find as well. Who knows how it varies by each dimension."

Pete nodded, "We'll make note of it. Are you okay?"

"Stomach is a bit mixed but should be good," Rose answered simply.

"What was it like?" Jake asked, finally asking what everyone in the room was wondering.

Rose paused as she thought of how to explain the horrific fight that was the void and how it completely chilled you to the core along with tearing at you as it tried to claim you. They really didn't need to know how horrible it was. They didn't need to know that once you finally landed after being in the void that all your muscles ached and you just wanted to curl up. They didn't need to know about the constant fight that left you landing in a sickening heap right away. No, these people didn't need to know any of that at all. So Rose simply settled for something short and sweet instead, "Cold and clingy."

Yeah she'd leave it at that. Cold and clingy. The debrief took about six hours as they made the necessary adjustments in order to determine how long Rose would spend in each location. They now realized that perhaps time wasn't as linear in each universe so they would have to figure out a solid amount of time to have between all the various hops. Once the final debriefing and initial discussions were done Rose was sent home along with the rest of the team to get some sleep. Instead of heading home however, Rose went to the Tyler Mansion where she hopped in and grinned as Tony squealed and ran towards her. She ignored the worried yet relieved face of her mother as she pulled Tony up into her arms. As his tiny arms slung around her neck she relaxed as she hugged him.

After setting Tony down to take off back to his toys Rose stepped forward towards Jackie who pulled her daughter into a tight hug as well. There were no words exchanged between them in that moment because Rose was letting it all out in that hug. Relief, sadness, exhaustion, pain, and trepidation along with a myriad of other emotions were flowing through her body as she just rested her head on her mother's shoulder. Rose lost count of how long they actually stood there hugging before Jackie pulled back and smiled at her daughter before dragging her into the sitting area for a nice cup of warm tea and time to relax.

The first hop was successful. One down, who knew how many to go…


	7. Chapter Six

"_I wrestled long with my youth_

_We tried so hard to live in the truth."_

_- 'Hopeless Wanderer' Mumford and Sons_

Over the next few months the team fell into a rhythm with the hops. Seven months after the first hop they had a complete routine set up with Rose making a hop to an identified rift, her spending 24 hours Pete's World time there regardless of how time traveled there, and then upon her return the results were catalogued. She would then have three days off before they would identify the next place and hop. It was horrible to think of how the realities were collapsing completely. The scientists and even the non-science types knew that there were an infinite number of alternate realities, but they were getting close; at least they hoped they were.

Rose had seen so much in her travels to all the worlds she had been to. Trip seventeen had Rose assisting the representatives of Earth in negotiating a peace treaty between the humans and the Ice Lords and Ice Warriors from Mars. In her short three days there Rose found herself before the Earth Alliance Counsel and the representatives of the Ice Warriors at a podium giving a passionate speech about the potential for both species growing stronger by working together and prospering in new ways. The end result was a signed treaty and an agreement for the Ice Warriors to settle into the inhabitable regions at the poles until their colony was strong enough to continue on and expand elsewhere. That trip left Rose with the rank of EA Dignitary and Ice Warrior Marshall. What that meant Rose still didn't know, but it sounded quite official.

Trip twenty-four had Rose once more facing off against the Cybermen who she loathed with every fiber of her being after the hell they had caused her. Hearing the familiar cry of 'delete,' Rose managed to find a band of teenagers to help her. Together Rose and the four boys (Kyle, Marty, Jesse, and Will who were four boys Rose would forever remember) managed to break into a computer store and use her phone to upload a virus into the networks that expanded to the Cybermen. One reprogramming attempt and a software patch later, the Cybermen stood frozen and dead across the world. A medal for valor and gratitude of the people of Earth later Rose was off once more.

Trip thirty-three left Rose surrounded again by the Slitheen unfortunately who just straight up irritated her. She helped resolve this issue by grabbing a UNIT soldier and dragging him violently into a grocery store where she grabbed a few bottles of vinegar, ensuring to drop some cash on the counter as she left, before she launched it at a Slitheen they cornered. One dead Raxacoricofallapatorian later UNIT finally was able to develop a strategy to eliminate the threat. Once enough of them had died the rest fled back to their home planet and Rose left that endeavor to come back wearing the stereotypical red beret to add to her collection. The soldier had thanked her and asked if there was anything they could possibly do to make it up to her. Rose had simply grinned and snatched the beret from his head before she was pulled once more through the void. She just couldn't resist.

The possibilities were endless but even still Rose made sure to keep going. Not all her trips were filled with battle as those had been. Some were enlightening. On Rose's ninth trip through the void she had somehow ended up engaged to the Prince of the Swedish Empire. That was a little unfortunate considering he wasn't the best looking of blokes available in the world, but he had promised her wealth and fame. Luckily she had managed to slide away into her chambers that she was given and was able to sneak away before he had managed to get the wedding going. Thirteen included Rose having to seduce a few government officials and get them drunk enough in a bar to swipe their access cards to get some research done. That had been an adventure and a half after Rose had noticed something shady and took it upon herself to see exactly what was going on. During trip thirty-one Rose had danced through a field where vendors were launching millions of bubbles in the air. She still remembered the little girl's hand that had grabbed her own before yanking her through the fields with laugher as they danced and ran. Dancing amongst children made Rose's heart just a little lighter after some of the other horrors she had encountered.

Those were the ones that Rose never spoke to anyone about. Those horrors and trials were the parts of this journey that Rose kept on lock down to protect all of those around her. The times where she would be stuck on her own for weeks as the time shifted different on that particular universe. During those hops Rose would have nothing leaving her to sleep in countless parks, under bridges, in abandoned houses, or if she was lucky in a guest bedroom of a kind soul who took her in. Some of the things Rose did in order to get money for food she never acknowledged or reflected upon with the understanding that she did what she needed to survive. Those were the trips though where after she would spend her days at her house in comfy clothing and soaking in long baths avoiding human contact. She knew that the team and her family and friends knew that something had happened, but they all played ignorant and left Rose to recover on her own during her days off.

Despite seeing the worse parts of humanity there Rose had also seen the beauty in it. Those souls who took her in when she said she was lost on a mission to try and find someone. She had so many stories of beautiful people helping her fight when fighting seemed endless. Those were the memories she would keep. One example was her running to find cover to get out of the rainstorm she found herself in while appearing in a residential area. She ran for blocks trying to find a park that had some cover, something or somewhere to hide that didn't involve breaking into someone's house. She was completely drenched and finally stopped running, defeated as she just walked trying to ignore the cold. That was when someone made their way through their front lawn to put an umbrella over her head and link her arm with theirs before bringing her inside for someplace warm and food. That was some of the beauty in humanity.

Seven months she had been doing this and yet Rose knew she would be doing this for some time more. In those seven months she had yet to hear back from her mysterious Guardians but she just kept going focusing on the goal. It was getting harder however as time continued to go on. Some days the trials and darkness just got to be too much and all the bad she had seen culminated in demons that defeated all the beauty and brilliance she had seen as well. Those were the bad days where she would ignore her phone and sit in her room trying to get a positive grasp on everything that was going on in her life once more. Sometimes the demons were just too strong that even seeing Tony bouncing around and singing about dinosaurs couldn't banish them.

She was coming on four and a half years in this universe since she had last seen the Doctor and her faith in what she was doing was fading. Rose didn't know how much longer she could keep doing this at a certain point. She stood before her full length mirror looking at her body before she got dressed in her battle armor as they called it. She still held her beauty, or at least she thought so, as she looked at her body. Muscles were present now from her time running and traveling and fighting. The only blemishes to her skin were the scars that she had received along the way to add onto the ones she gained during her Torchwood missions. Her arm bore a scar from a graze of a knife in a fight, small burns on her legs and back, another graze or two on her stomach, but the most significant change and lasting effect from her travels was her eyes from the scars that were mental.

During her last visit with her mother, Jackie had confessed to Rose that she didn't know if it was worth it anymore for Rose to keep traveling because in the end it was costing Jackie her daughter. Rose had been confused as anyone would have been until her mother elaborated only what Rose realized to be the truth. She was more of a warrior, a soldier, the _Champion_ as the Guardians had called her. Her eyes were hardened more than that shop girl she had been years ago from all the atrocities she had seen. As she was putting Tony to bed one night her little brother had asked her what made her so sad. Rose had been so stunned she didn't respond fast enough that Tony continued on to explain.

"Your eyes look sad," he had told her before he added, "I don't want you to be sad."

From that moment on Rose quickly learned how to mask that from her mother and Tony to limit their hurt. She couldn't stand the idea that her friends and family and those around her knew of the hell she was going through for the sake of saving them all. That guilt would kill them in ways she didn't want to imagine. So was the burden of being a Champion it seemed…

Shaking her head at the thoughts, Rose started to get dressed to head back to Torchwood for her latest hop. When she arrived the team was ready to go as they always were and with ease and familiarity they prepared the cannon for her hop. The fight through the void was what Rose had become accustomed to but yet still was as unsettling as the first time no matter when she traveled through. She popped out from the void and shook off the cold feeling from her body as she started walking inconspicuously, looking at her surroundings which reminded her of somewhere she had been before.

The buildings were made of metal and glass, bright and shining as the epitome of technology. She looked and saw the vehicles driving in overhead lanes almost reminiscent of New Earth. Rose moved through the streets along the shops and crowd as she viewed everyone's strange clothing and silently wondered what people thought of her every time she appeared looking as she did. As she walked around trying to find a place to hide out until she was pulled back she was approached by a couple people wearing almost robes with smiles on their face.

"You are not from here," one said.

Rose just looked at him with a sigh, "Sorry, I don't know what you're talking about. I'll just leave."

"No, it is fine," the one replied easily with a smile. "You are the Wolf who chases the stars. Please come with us. Our elders wish to speak with you."

_That definitely is interesting,_ Rose replied as she stood up straight and followed the two through the streets to what looked like a headquarters of some sort with a large balance emblazoned on the doors. _Elders likely meaning the government types,_ Rose mused mentally. She followed them through the hallways until she found herself standing before a semi-circle of people in fancier robes seated. Rose looked at her guides who nodded for her to take a seat at the table before the people in charge so she sighed and did so. No use fighting since they hadn't shown any sign of aggression up to this point. Plus Rose was pretty intrigued at the comment about her being the Wolf. What exactly did these people know about her?

"We apologize for our cryptic approach," A woman near the center stated, her voice airy and almost falsely happy as she addressed Rose. "Our sensors indicated one passing through the howling and as such we wanted to invite you before our Council of Elders to welcome you and to answer any questions you may have."

"Okay," Rose replied interested now. "I guess I'll start with who are you?"

"We are as my companion said, the Council of Elders. We are the regional government who rules over this section of land to work with the people to maintain the harmony that exists," a man explained. "The world here has existed in pure harmony for over two thousand years with this form of government since the abolition."

Rose looked surprised, "Two thousand years of peace. The abolition of what could result in that?"

"Falsified law and belief," the woman elaborated, speaking once more. "There are those who would claim that there were Gods who reigned supreme, dictating law rather than the people themselves, and causing oppression. Many wars were waged in the names of these false entities. It was only upon the joint abolition movement amongst the people of Earth, that the idea of the humanity being the ultimate belief prospered and enabled us to advance quickly in the sciences and knowledge."

"What year is it?" Rose questioned.

"2019 PA," the woman smiled. "Post-Abolition which occurred in 29 AD according to the standard Gregorian calendar of the past."

2048. Not too far beyond where they had been shooting for but Rose had to admit that this was far too advanced for Earth by her standards of experience. She knew from her travels with the Doctor that human advancement on Earth wouldn't reach this level for years after the date normally. Could the demolition of religion truly cause humans to advance this quickly and fiercely? Apparently so. However Rose knew that there was always a downside to anything that seemed this good. Sometimes people needed to believe in something and that belief was what drove people to brilliance and innovation in itself. How could they completely eliminate faith?

"So where is the downfall?" Rose questioned looking at the panel. "What of those who choose to have a belief in something other than humanity?"

A new man spoke this time, "They are sent to the reformatory where they study the importance of the abolition movement and usually through those renewed studies they choose to fall back in line with the goal of prosperity for humanity."

_Brainwashing 101_, Rose mentally decided with ease. That was a new one definitely. Rose looked at the group before her and realized at least that there were no major weapons or threats beyond the science itself it seemed. She would be able to relax hopefully until she was pulled home once more.

"Would it be possible for me to view the history while I am here? I was addressed as the Wolf by my guides and I am curious as to why you have attached that name to me," Rose commented.

"Are you not the Bad Wolf?" The woman asked amused.

Well, this was a difficult situation. Rose mentally weighed the pros and cons of how to answer; the pros eventually outweighed their negative counterparts as it seemed that the idea of her being the Wolf was something that these individuals respected. So far they hadn't treated her with hostility so…

"I have answered to that name in my life yes," Rose replied pausing. "However I have not visited here before that I am aware of."

The reformatory talking man then turned to Rose, "We will allow your guides as you called them to show you to our records hall to review our historical records. There you will find the answers you seek."

Rose nodded, understanding a dismissal when she heard one. She turned to her guides who were standing and waiting for her. She followed them through the halls until she reached a room which looked just like a standard room except with a platform in the middle facing an empty wall. Confused she looked at the two who walked before her stepping on each side of it. One motioned for her to step up and Rose looked at the station nervously, unsure of its purpose.

"It is a virtual library. By stepping on the platform you engage the interface and can request documents as you wish," one guide explained.

"Sounds interesting," Rose muttered as she stepped on with a tense body waiting for hell to break loose but it never happened.

Instead the image of a woman appeared before her; a clear hologram dressed in the clothing of the people in this period.

"I am the visual interface. What documents do you request?" her computer voice stated.

Rose paused, "Records of the Bad Wolf."

The girl disappeared before more holograms appeared showing writings as the girl's voice spoke leading Rose through the history.

_The first appearance of Bad Wolf in historical records dates to the year 27 AD in the middle of the abolition conflict. Eyewitnesses recount a vision of a woman whose body was emblazoned in light with the hair the color of the sun stepping from a lightning storm in the middle of Jerusalem during one of the largest wars. The Wolf stopped the fighting with a simple statement that differs by account. The Wolf's appearance caused those on the many sides engaged in conflict that day to stop and agree to a cessation of conflict for a day to engage in talks. The Christians, Jews, Arabs, and Abolitionists all came together to discuss the implications and soon came to create what was known as the Great Compromise and the first step towards peace for all of humanity._

_The second appearance of the Wolf dates to 239 PA during a revolt in the Library of Alexandria where the Wolf was said to hold back the fire from the burning building enabling over ninety individuals to escape unharmed. The Wolf's assistance is credited with saving those lives and also enabling for the safe evacuation of precious documents engrained in the history of mankind._

The computer went on discussing stories of the _Wolf_ making appearances to help save this world and humanity and making Rose silently question whether or not her time in the time vortex may have impacted more than her own world and universe. The stories were vast reaching and so in depth that Rose was in awe. This was just too odd.

Rose then cut off the computer, "Any visual record?"

The computer paused, _Visual recordings do not exist. Only recorded image of the Wolf is by drawings from eyewitnesses at the sightings._

Before her Rose watched as a number of drawing from many years appeared all depicting someone who looked as though they bore her face. _Well I'll be damned,_ Rose mused.

_The records of the Wolf cause turmoil amongst the more strict academics as they believe the repeated appearances resemble that of the deities of old. The tales of heroic and valiant efforts to bring peace to humanity and maintaining the progression of the human race call into question the true existence of the Bad Wolf as something other than mere story. Some regard the Wolf as a traveler in time with extraordinary powers while others regard the Wolf as something alien entirely. In recent records to date, the Wolf exists as a story mainly told to children to explain the importance of human prosperity and how that humanity has a warrior whose job is to ensure the progression: the Wolf._

Rose turned to her guides, "Is there an actual children's story?"

One guide smiled, "Yes there is. I was read it as a child."

Rose smiled back her eyes widening, "Any way I can get a copy of that while I'm here?"

Nine hours later, Rose stood outside looking up at the few stars filling the sky. She held in her hand under her arm three books depicting tales of the Wolf to add to her collection. Although Rose knew she had previously only been in a few worlds, she had come to discover many had versions of the Bad Wolf making her wonder if her actions in her travels had spurned other universes that she had visited. As a result she had hidden at her house a stack of books and stories about the various wolves. She just didn't understand what the importance of the Wolf was until she went to universes like these where it seemed the Wolf had saved lives. It made her think of her first doctor who she had wiped out an entire Dalek armada just to save. Protection seemed to be the essence of the wolf. Rose turned as her guides stepped beside her.

"The stars are disappearing," one noted.

"Have been for ages now," the second commented.

"It's happening everywhere," Rose explained with a sigh. "The cause is how I manage to appear to you all now."

"So the Wolf is fighting to stop them from disappearing," the first said hopeful.

Rose swallowed hard as she looked at him; the man was her age, yet she looked at him and saw a child inside of him that she had lost long ago. She could see the optimism and almost the plea in his eyes that someone somewhere was doing something to protect the stars that humanity had dreamt about for years. Rose was about to answer when she felt the pull in her gut. Knowing she was limited on time she just smiled at them both.

"Always," was all she said before she was pulled through the void into the fight once more before she was stepping out more gracefully than her initial travels back into Torchwood.

"Not dead, woo hoo," Jake grinned as Rose stepped out.

"Creepy world, not ours," Rose stated simply with a sigh.

"Creepy how?" Mickey asked.

"Long story," Rose grunted.

Once more the planet was flagged and the cycle restart. Once at home, Rose put the books on the shelf by her fireplace next to the others. She ran her fingers along the spines and smiled at the impact of the Wolf. As she turned to head upstairs to take a bath the fatigue began to set in. She was going on eight months of travel with nothing whatsoever. The Guardians had promised that they would push her towards the right place but so far she was shooting blanks and growing frustrated. Something needed to happen and it needed to happen soon.


	8. Chapter Seven

"I, I could be anything

But for the fault that I've acquired on my way

We, We were the end of it

But now we see the sun shining in our face

We see the sun shining in our face"

- 'Sleeping at the Wheel' Matchbox Twenty

Trip number forty-five gets marked up as one that Rose will not elaborate on or speak to anyone about for the rest of her life; however long that may end up being. This trip started off as any normal hop as she popped out in an alley in downtown London. Sliding out and adjusting her clothes, she started with what she always did: analyzing her surroundings. People were walking around in their everyday lives with no stress or worry about anything going on beyond menial day to day tasks and stressors and such a sight was instantly relaxing.

_No zeppelins in the sky, no aliens, one sun, decent sky, so far so good_. Rose grabbed a newspaper, paying for it as she continued to walk on and looked at the date; not absurd or funky at all. Newspaper headlines are normal as ever talking about a new prime minister raising questions which made her chuckle. That's normal as well. Unfortunately, she was so caught up in her immediate analysis that she accidentally bumped into someone.

"Sorry," Rose offered, but as she raised her head she saw that there were three men in suits that she bumped into who were currently staring her down as though she were a lawless thug. "Or not. Hello."

Of the three, there was one relatively skinny man with two bigger guys flanked at his sides as they're looked her over to see if she was a threat. Rose swallowed hard; she really needed to get away from these men and that was apparent given their looks. Giving them a sheepish and nervous smile, her mind was made up to try and play this whole situation off as the innocent girl and hope that they would at least accept the facade.

"Did I do something wrong?" Rose asked hesitantly.

"You need to come with us," one of the goons demanded.

"Whoa, there's been some mistake," Rose replied innocently and then froze as one pulled back his suit jacket to show her the gun.

_Now I understand why the Doctor hates guns_, Rose mused. However the three years in Torchwood also made her curse as she thought, _and I also realize why it's so damn good to carry one as well._ Guns had a way of controlling almost any situation.

"Ma'am," the other goon stated and Rose sighed.

She wasn't going to be able to fight this. So she begrudgingly allowed Crabbe and Goyle, as she mentally dubbed them, to drag her around the corner to where a black SUV was parked with severely tinted windows. _This is so cliché_. Rose climbed into the car where she was told to sit in the back seat, flanked by Crabbe and Goyle as they drove on to their destination in silence. Secretly, Rose allowed herself to hope that this world ran slower than Pete's world so that her time would pull her from this world sooner rather than later and she wouldn't have to worry about this chaos. This situation was getting completely unpredictable as time went on and who knew what she was getting into. Hoping that a minute here was an hour in Pete's world was a bit much to hope for however. Rose just sighed and bounced her leg anxiously as she watched her surroundings to keep track of where they were in case she managed to get away from these guys.

Eventually after driving through the town for a while, the SUV pulled into an underground garage after passing about four security gates before Crabbe pulled her out of the car and Rose found herself surrounded as they lead her to an elevator. All piling in, Rose kept her gaze on the floors as well as they traveled. Unfortunately, the floor they were going required a pin code and an access card to get to. Her escape was looking even more impossible by the minute.

The elevator ride up seemed to take forever and stretch miles upon miles before the doors opened and Rose was led out into what seemed like a giant suite of sorts. Before she could look at the open sitting areas and everything, she was once more led around to a door where one of the goons knocked. Rose hesitated as she heard a voice from inside beckon them in. She was being brought to meet someone which given the security of the building didn't bode well for her. Shoving her into the room, Rose stumbled only slightly, putting her hands in the pockets of her jacket as the man behind the desk ordered everyone else out. Rose was perfectly fine until she heard the door lock behind her; now was the time for her to panic. The man behind the desk wore a dark expression as he looked quite irritated or ready to strike and it set Rose immediately on edge as he stood purposefully.

"Who are you?" He asked simply, his tone low.

"Look there's been some kind of mistake," Rose began but stopped as he continued to move from around the desk almost predatorily as he looked her over.

"Where did you come from?" He asked and Rose's mind instantly started going a million miles a minute as she realized he must have seen her come out of the void; her mind was stopped suddenly by him standing a few feet away and breathing in deeply. _Odd_. "You smell of the void."

_Smell?_ Rose mentally contemplated before her veins turned to ice. This man's mannerisms were way too similar to that which she knew oh so well. But he was darker; he was the kind of dark that the Doctor warned her that they could become and that she had read about on her various hops to alternate worlds... It couldn't be…

"You're a Time Lord," Rose's stunned voice whispered without consulting her mind and he stood up straight while Rose tried to contain her panic. "Oh my god."

"Who are you?" He demanded in a growl.

Rose hesitated as she tried to rationalize an answer but stepped back as he advanced until finally she was against the door with nowhere else to go as her gaze was locked on to the man across from her, "I can't say. You of everyone must know what the wrong word can mean-"

Rose winced as his hand slammed at the wall beside her head while he looked her over taking a sniff again; this was moving into very dangerous territory fast, "You smell of the void and time and yet you smell human. Why are you here?"

"Trust me, it's an accident," Rose answered irresolute. "I'm trying to find someone."

"How do you know of the Time Lords?" He growled.

Rose hesitated as she looked at him, "I can't tell you."

_Wrong answer_, Rose mentally chided herself as he grabbed her head and threw her hard down to the ground with a growl. She needed to get out of this situation fast. Rose immediately began surveying the room for an exit but apparently the only way out was that damned door which was locked and for some reason she doubted that she would have the time to pick it with this man on her.

"I am Harry Saxon, the Prime Minister and you don't tell me what the hell you can and can't tell me," He growled. "Who are you?"

"What's a Time Lord doing as the Prime Minister?" Rose questioned as she moved to stand on her feet once more.

Saxon apparently had other plans as he kicked her hard in the ribs, sending her back to the ground coughing, "That is none of your business."

"You're him aren't you?" Rose said as she panted, wincing at her ribs as she looked up at him. "The one who went insane."

Saxon stood up straight, "I am not insane."

"So why do you hear the drums then?" Rose asked as she managed to use this as an opportunity to stand again. "It's a knocking right? Four beats in time?"

Saxon stepped forward grabbing her by the throat tightly, but Rose didn't panic or fight as he looked her eyes wild, "How?"

"I've read about you," She said despite the tightness at her throat. "Koschei, The Master being the name you gave yourself. You helped the Daleks against the Time Lords in one of the worlds I visited. History books weren't kind to you. Why are you here now? Why would you pick Earth of all places when you hate humans?"

"To pursue a conquest here," he commented as he looked her over once more as though he were a starving man looking at a feast. "Why is a human hopping between universes?"

"Can't tell you," Rose made out before his grip tightened around her throat even more so less air was getting through and her hands grabbed at his hand; _the bastard is damn strong._

"Empty your pockets," he ordered.

Rose lowered her hands from his as she reached in and just pulled out the cash she always carried, protein bars, a cell phone that wouldn't really work for anything here, and lip balm. She had gotten used to traveling light and not bringing anything that could cause a paradox or endanger her should she cross the wrong person. He shoved her hands to the side as he checked himself and then shoved her back away from him. Rose rubbed her neck as she breathed with a slight wince. _That was going to bruise_.

"A void traveler who is not quite a human," he stated.

Rose was mentally wondering what the hell to call this man she had read about. He was horrible from the sounds of it yet she was wondering whether or not the Doctor had known this man before he had become crazy or even now. Either way he was not safe for her to be around and Rose was silently hoping for the team to pull her. They _really_ needed to work on that panic button. Luckily, there was a knock at the door stopping him from pursuing her further as Crabbe reentered, or maybe it was Goyle, reminding Saxon of an appointment.

He turned back to Rose with a sneer, "Put her in lock down until I get back to her."

Rose swallowed hard at his tone and didn't fight as the goon grabbed her arm and led her down the hall of the floor until she was thrown in a room. Stumbling to regain her balance, Rose spun back to the door which closed right behind her and locked. Four locks on a door. This was not good. She turned to look at the room she was in which had absolutely nothing in it. It was more of a storage closet with just a single light hanging above her. Rose walked the length of it finding it to be small, about a ten foot cube, and with that she sighed. No windows, nothing.

She was going to be stuck waiting this one out. Rose just hoped she wouldn't be waiting long. So she started pacing to pass the time and to stay mobile. She needed to be ready for whatever he was going to throw at her.

* * *

"This is not going to end well," Azure stated troubled as he stood in the field opposite of Red alongside Gold. "We should have directed her away from him. This will be an unnecessary trial and deviation from her goal."

"We do not pick and choose where the Wolf travels to," Red replied. "We can guide and direct a general direction for them to isolate, but it is not our direction or our role to intervene directly. If it were, we would send her to the correct world without a doubt."

"I do see the danger here," Gold commented. "Koschei is as unstable as he was when he was a child in every universe imaginable. He will harm her if they do not pull her from that world soon."

"The Wolf knows of the dangers he may pose," Red offered. "She had read his tales while in her travels and research on the Time Lords. She is not as innocent and unprepared as we may feel."

"She has other trials ahead," Gold stated. "Much more pain in her future to face."

"Then let this be one of those trials for her to grow and develop. The Wolf must grow to be strong by the time she finds the Doctor or else she will not be able to stand by him and fight to stop the Darkness," Red replied. "We cannot intervene in this situation as it stands."

* * *

Rose had lost track of how long she had been in there when the locks started to turn over. Giving up on pacing around about an hour ago she guessed, Rose had sat with a perfect view of the door to prepare for whatever would enter. She moved from where she had been sitting to stand, looking directly at the door as she waited. The door opened and closed as the man she had been stressing over entered looking at her. She had read so much of his stories; tales of how his rage and anger had killed thousands upon thousands. She read about how he had been banished and put in prison and punished more by the Time Lords. She finally had read that he claimed insanity surrounding the four knocks in his head in at least a handful of the universes she had been in. However, Rose had no idea how to use this information to her advantage at this point given that he was a madman. How do you bargain with insanity?

"Well what should I use to address you?" He asked as he stood looking at her. "If you won't tell me your name I feel there should be something I can use."

Rose hesitated before she answered, "Some call me Wolf."

He smirked at that response, "Wolf. Such a strong name for a human child."

Rose rolled her eyes, "What should I call you, man of many names?"

That made him cackle slightly, but Rose kept her bravado up, "You will soon learn to call me Master, child."

The door opened once more as one of the goons entered with a bag he placed on the ground before walking out and closing the door behind him. The Master waited until the door locked before he smirked at her.

"Curious?" He questioned as he stepped behind the large bag. "Curious at all to know my plan?"

"Don't really care to get in depth with the crazy guys plans," Rose retorted. "In my experience crazy men with crazy plans don't usually succeed so I don't bother with the blathering on and the witty banter."

"You will tell me why you are here," the Master stated firmly.

"I don't think so," Rose answered. "I can't tell you and it honestly has nothing to do with you. My landing here was an accident."

"Why are you traveling through the void?" the Master questioned.

"I'm looking for someone," Rose replied still being vague. "Some place to be more specific."

The Master reached down into the bag and pulled out what looked like just a simple stick which definitely caught Rose's attention as he adjusted it in his hand, getting a grip on it, "How are you traveling?"

"I can't tell you," Rose answered.

"We'll try this one more time," the Master stated, his voice lowering. "How are you traveling?"

Rose didn't answer, but instead her eyes were on the object in his hand which she now noticed had two small metal prongs barely protruding from the end of the stick. _What the hell?_ Rose stepped back as he approached her, but unfortunately the room was small so as she tried to bypass him and duck around him the object in his hand barely grazed her and she immediately tensed. Her whole body convulsed with her nerves firing up in pain as though she was getting electrocuted or traveling through the void with no destination forever. Rose clenched her jaw as the pain radiated through her body uncontrollably. Finally the Master pulled it away and her body fell onto the floor, shaking slightly.

"Maybe I'll start easier for you, _Wolf_," the Master stated as he circled her. "How about you tell me exactly how you know so much about me?"

"Parallel you," Rose corrected, her voice tight.

"What of the Time Lords in your world? They would never allow someone to travel the void like you do," he sneered. "The void is completely off limits to everyone. The High Council…"

"Never considered that they're all dead did you?" Rose stated looked up at him, cutting off his tirade and causing his eyes to darken. "The entire civilization including you burned in a war. There are no Time Lords anymore in my world because you all started to believe yourselves God. Something had to be done."

The Master thrust his arm forward once more and Rose held in the yell in her throat as the pain began anew. She just needed to hold on until she got pulled; once she got pulled she would take a nice hot bath and she'd be fine. The only question at this point was how long before they finally pulled her because this was starting to get brutal and given the man before her who knew how much worse it could get.

* * *

"Are you still convinced that we should not take action?" White proffered to Red at his side as they watched the scene taking place.

"The Wolf is strong enough to make it through this," Red stated although her voice was not as definite and assured as it usually was.

"For once I have to agree with my counterpart," Black said as he joined the group. "We can't break the Wolf too early and if anyone was dark enough to do so it would be this beast."

Azure sighed, "Perhaps she is strong enough. She has yet to give him what he asks for."

"That could be to her detriment as well," White replied looking away from the image of the woman convulsing in pain as she had been for the past few hours during the stern interrogation.

Then they watched as the Master tossed the implement to the side and declared his new plan silencing them all.

"Crystal go," Red declared. "Go now!"

He didn't hesitate as he disappeared with one destination in mind. They had to protect their Wolf.

* * *

"See here's the thing Wolf," the Master said as Rose tried to ignore the pain in her body and push herself up once more. "I don't need you to tell me what I want to know. Time Lords are telepathic remember? As much fun as it has been playing with you, I grow tired with your insistence not to tell me things."

Rose froze remembering what had happened with Reinette and how the Doctor had entered her mind. Torchwood had trained everyone in basic psychic defenses, but she would stand no chance against a fully trained Time Lord. Rose immediately started moving as adrenaline fueled her system beyond the pain and fatigue as she scrambled way from the Master who managed to grab her arm. Rose kicked at his knee making him stumble and loosen his grip enough that she slid out and moved away, scrambling to her feet. Rose was breathing heavy and trying to ignore the haze in her head as she kept an eye on him in this impossibly small room. Hours of torture and electrocution seemed to do some damage to a body; she should make a note of that.

"You can't escape," he stated as he went for her again.

This time Rose wasn't quick enough and he managed to get an arm around her, holding her close against him as his other hand went to her temple. Rose struggled but then stilled as she felt him start to push into her head. Rose threw up every barrier she possibly could but he kept pushing like a migraine ebbing at the back of her head. Just as he started to access her memories however, a powerful force threw him out with such force that he let go of her, stumbling back as her body fell to the ground.

Rose was ignoring whatever the hell that was as she tried to clear the haze in her mind and move. She managed to start moving towards the stick he had used earlier to electrocute her while he was still disoriented, but just as she reached it the Master yanked her ankle and pulled her back. Rose grunted at the pain that pulled through her body as he knelt roughly on her back, one hand holding her head down as he placed his other hand back on her temple and starting to push once more. Rose threw up the barriers once more and just as finally he started tearing them down he was thrown backwards once more.

"What are you?!" The Master roared loudly enraged.

Rose looked up at him, feeling the haze in her mind starting clear and a surge of power coming through her. The Master stood looking at her eyes which were glowing golden with pure time power and he breathed in her once more; she smelt of time and all that is and ever was…

"What are you?" He demanded once more as he moved forward except before he could even reach her he was thrown back against a wall and then a man appeared in the corner.

The man clicked his tongue as if in disappointment as he looked at the Master and just sighed. The Master went to move but found he was stuck where he had fallen making him growl in anger.

"You should know better than to enter the mind of another unwillingly," Azure stated.

_Azure! That was it. _Rose thought to herself as she recognized the voice, blinking a few times to look at the image of him in the corner. Why the hell was he here though? Rose felt her body starting to relax once more; losing its strength that she had been feeling a few minutes ago. She could finally relax and begin to process and comprehend the feeling in her body from the torture she had just put up with.

"Guardians aren't supposed to interfere with the workings of mortals," the Master spat simply at the man. "What is this human to you?"

"More than you will ever know," Azure answered. "Prepare yourself Wolf."

Rose was about to ask for what when she felt the familiar electrical charge and pull at her stomach telling her she was about to go through the vortex. She took a few breaths and managed to stand. She would need to keep this trip a secret she knew because this was over the top risky. If the Torchwood team found out anything about this they may cut her trips to a close and they would all be done. She had to find strength somewhere.

"Thank you," Rose stated simply.

"What?!" the Master roared and then Rose started to disappear.

She fought through the void and when she popped out once more in the lab she was exhausted. The team waited for any indication, but all Rose could do was shake her head. _One step at a time_, Rose told herself as she took the first step completely exhausted and nearly collapsing. Rose reached over to a nearby console which she used to hold herself up with a sigh while she willed her body to keep going. She wasn't going to be able to make this walk by herself.

"Jake," Rose said softly and he moved forward to help her as he pulled her arm around his shoulders.

"What happened?" Jake asked.

Rose sighed, "You know when you run a lot or work out so much your body just wants to sleep for a year?"

"Yeah," Jake replied.

"I need to sleep for a year," Rose retorted and Jake chuckled relaxing slightly. "Nothing bad, just exhausted."

"I'll drive you home," Jake stated simply.

"I'll be fine I think," Rose replied. "I just need to sit awhile."

Jake shook his head, but acquiesced as she instructed him to help her to her office. Once inside, Rose ignored the piles of papers and books that had accumulated as she sat at her desk and leaned back in her chair, closing her eyes.

"It wasn't just a run of the mill hop was it?" Jake questioned.

"Nah it was, just for some reason I was freaking exhausted," Rose replied with a shrug. "Was there awhile so I didn't sleep for the first night and ended up doing a bit of running when someone spotted me snooping around. I'm fine Jake. Honest."

Jake hesitated, "So the red marks around your neck?"

"An embarrassing event with a scarf," Rose smirked as she opened her eyes to look at him. "It was cold so I snagged one from some shop hence the running. Once I was running though it got caught on something and I almost choked myself. Tell Mickey and I'll skin you."

Jake laughed, "Okay no scarfs for you then during missions."

"Lesson learned," Rose agreed, although internally she was wincing at her lie. "Give me fifteen minutes and if I'm not good by then you can drive me home okay?"

Jake nodded and let her sit for a while. By the time her fifteen minutes were up, Rose was even more ready to sleep so she accepted his offer to drive her home. Two hours later Rose grabbed some comfortable clothing and moved to the bathroom as she turned on the bath with warm water. As she started undressing she winced at the sight. The rod apparently had made some marks. Rose had a couple small burns on her side and back from where the charge had entered her along with some bruising from his kicks and overall manhandling of her. They'd heal over in time like any other but it was enough to remind Rose of how bad that had nearly been. Must have been pretty risky if the Guardians had gotten involved. Rose ignored the new wounds and just moved to settle in the bath. She needed to forget the dark time lord and move on to prepare for her next hop.

Luckily for Rose the next hop was an easy one where she was able to meander around town while waiting to be pulled back. It was clear that this wasn't her world with the great abundance of alien races here for some sort of festival. Rose maneuvered through the crowd as she got to the heart of the festival before relaxing in the sights. This was definitely a reprieve from a psychotic time lord. Rose looked down as a little girl ran over and tugged on her jacket sleeve with a smile on her face. Rose chuckled and crouched down so she was at eye level with the young girl.

"For you," the girl offered holding out a flower, a beautiful rose.

"Really," Rose replied with a smile. "Thank you. Why me though? You should keep it."

"Sometimes no matter the darkness you need a beautiful rose to brighten your day," she replied looking at Rose with a beautiful smile.

Rose looked at the flower in her hand surprised by the girl's statement. What the hell did that mean? As she stood up once more, she lifted the flower to her nose and was surprised by the amazing scent which made her relax even further. Maybe the girl was right. She looked back down at the little girl who smiled at her before holding out a hand for Rose to take. Rose had no idea who this girl was but put her hand around her smaller one and let the girl pull her forward through the crowd until she was standing before a flurry of flowers and bubbles and balloons and more.

"No one should be alone during the festival," the girl declared simply looking up at Rose once more. "No one should ever be alone."

"Who are you?" Rose asked.

She smiled, "A friend."

With that the girl gave Rose a hug around the waist before she ran off through the bubbles laughing in joy and disappeared out of sight. Rose looked at the flower in her hand and at the beauty before her. This really was a needed trip after that hell she had recently endured. Rose looked around and then saw a booth where a man was selling stuffed animals. Sneaking a sight of a stuffed dinosaur Rose started to move over there. Tony could always use a new toy…


	9. Chapter Eight

"So come on, come on, it's all we got

Our hands are full, our lives are not

When everyone just tells us how to feel

We're sleeping at the wheel."

- 'Sleeping at the Wheel' Matchbox Twenty

After some of the worse trips Rose had endured and some of the most hilarious and entertaining ones, trip number fifty two joined the list of memorable ones that would fill Rose's dreams once more. Rose came out of the void slowing to a stop in an empty field making her groan. This one was a bad launch most definitely. Groaning as she looked at the sky, Rose closed her eyes and breathed in deeply. At least it wasn't raining. She started to make her way towards the road where she started walking towards what looked to be some semblance of a town. It seemed like she walked for ages, but finally Rose reached the town which made her relax at the slight small town vibe she got from it. Looking around, Rose spotted a market which she stepped into looking for a newspaper.

Rose was looking at the racks finally finding one when someone stepped up beside her. She reached for the newspaper keeping an eye on the man who seemed to be looking outside at the windows as inconspicuously as possible before he whispered softly to her.

"You need to get out of here," he whispered.

Rose sighed internally, _what now_, "Why?"

"They'll find you," he replied.

"Who will?" Rose asked confused.

The man turned to her and Rose paused at the sight of him. He looked about her age, but as though he could use a solid meal. His face had small scarring on the right side with one jagged scar extending from the corner of his eye down to his jaw. _What was going on?_

"The Pacificators will find you if you walk out so publically," he said looking at her like she was crazy. "You are one are you not? You're unmarked."

"I have no idea what you are talking about," Rose replied honestly. "I'm not from here."

He just gave Rose a small smile, "Then it is true. You are an outsider."

At his words, Rose turned her gaze back to the newspaper: September 21, 2020. _Could they not get the damned date right?_ Rose at least had to admit that one out of every fifteen with the dates ending up wrong wasn't that bad to be honest though. Rose sighed as she dropped the newspaper down and turned to the guy.

"Who are these Pacificators, what do they want, and why would they care about me?" Rose asked.

The man turned and nodded at the shop keeper who gave a short nod back. He then turned back and lightly grabbed Rose's arm and guided her towards the back of the store where he led her into the hallways leading to storage rooms and other offices.

"Wait a minute," Rose began but silenced as they approached a door to a storage room.

He used a code to get inside and opened the door, leading her in before locking it behind them. Silently he led her into the room and then to a corner where there was just a wall. Pressing on two spots and pushing the wall gave in and a door pushed inwards before opening. Rose followed him now even more interested into a back room where there were about fifteen people gathered in the small space on cots and bunks from the ages of probably thirteen to thirty. They look so broken down that Rose was stunned immediately.

"Okay what is going on?" Rose asked as the door closed behind her.

"You really don't know?" A woman asked from the side. "How do you not know what they are doing?"

Rose winced slightly, "I'm not from here. I'm really, really not from here."

The group all looked at each other and then finally the person who led her here spoke up, "My name is Liam. Nine months ago, the Pacificators came in implementing new laws through our local government and they were appearing everywhere. National television, radio, and newspapers began talking about the changes."

"Who are they?" Rose asked.

"I don't understand them when they speak; no one does," one of the woman said. "They talk in very short phrases and they have enormous helmets. No one has seen them with them off. Very rarely will they speak English. They don't see us as equal enough to speak with us unless they need something."

_Aliens_, Rose groaned.

"So someone is using them as enforcers," Rose stated and they nodded. "But for what reason?"

"To implement change," Liam continued. "The radio broadcasts all talk about how Earth has failed to reach its potential and develop. As a result an outside force has come in to set us on the right track."

"So why are you hiding and why did you say they'd want me?" Rose questioned.

"They have full records of everyone down to where they live, what their job is, everything," Someone answered. "If you're not where you're registered then they detain you."

"And you all aren't supposed to be here," Rose stated getting nods. "Why?"

"This city used to serve as a location on a path to sanctuary for people fleeing persecution from the Russian Empire," Liam explained and Rose sighed. "They're not citizens."

This was going to get complicated oh so fast. Rose sighed as she turned towards where the door was as they heard a commotion in the main store. Rose moved to the wall listening as well as she could as she heard voices followed by the very short staccato of words. Wait… She knew that pattern of speech very well and as she started putting together the description of these Pacificators it all started making sense.

"Judoon," Rose said realizing what was going on as though it were obvious. "Large helmets to cover up the fact that they're freaking space rhinos."

"Excuse me?" Liam asked.

"The Pacificators, large grey suits, guns, funny torch that they use to scan you that kind of glows purple?" Rose asked and they nodded. "They're Judoon, but why are they here doing enforcement jobs for some gang?"

"What are Judoon?" a woman asked confused.

"Space Police," Rose replied as she paced thinking. "I've worked with them a couple times for different matters elsewhere. I just don't understand why they're here."

"You know what they are saying?" Liam asked. "You can talk to them?"

Rose stood up straight, she knew enough to get by. When a member of the Shadow Proclamation had come to Earth while she was working at Torchwood she had interacted with them and in the following months quickly learned enough to converse with them. She knew the mechanics of speaking their language, now it was time to put it to the test it seemed.

"Yeah I can," Rose replied. "Let me sneak out. I need to find out what's going on here."

Rose took a deep breath and then with Liam's help slid out leaving the others hidden. She listened as the Judoon were interrogating the shopkeeper who wasn't able to tell them what he wanted even though they had assimilated to speak English. As she came into view one of the shielded Judoon stepped before her.

"Kro do flo no to kro fo kro co blo to kro plo no," He demanded with a gun. "Id-"

"Identification, I know," Rose answered making the others pause as she took in a deep breath, _Here goes nothing. _"Kro · blo mo · no plo to · fo ro plo mo · ho flo ro flo."

Three Judoon came up to her almost surrounding her. Rose immediately realized that being straight forward and telling them that she wasn't from here probably wasn't the best of decisions. Now it was time to negotiate it seemed.

"I know what you are," Rose continued before they could start speaking. "You're the Judoon. I want to know what purpose you have here regulating the earthlings when the Shadow Proclamation strictly decreed that involvement in the advancement in planets and societies by higher evolved beings without valid agreement is forbidden."

One of the Judoon before her took off his helmet making the shopkeeper faint at the sight of a space rhino, "You will be scanned and processed."

Rose didn't flinch as they held the scanner up to her before pulling it back, reading the results.

"Human," he stated. "You will come with us."

_Great_, Rose thought. This was going to be fun. She followed the rhinos to a building where she was forcibly sat down in a chair making her grunt and rub at the shoulder they had shoved in annoyance. Rose used their underestimation of her as she looked around the room. There were about ten Judoon around doing various things meaning she was in no way whatsoever going to be able to pull any slick moves to get away from them if needed. Rose still couldn't understand what the hell was going on and why the Judoon would be acting like this on Earth. In pretty much every planet she had visited they were considered a protected planet. Invading forces acted in violation of the laws by the group that the Judoon almost always worked extensively for.

"Why am I here?" Rose asked bluntly.

"Silence," another stated.

They started speaking to one another in their short curt language before one commented simply, cutting the other off stating that Rose could understand them. Yup, that put an interesting target on her head. _Good thinking Rose_. She was waiting for probably twenty minutes or so before a screen on the wall before her turned on and a Judoon Commander came on the screen making Rose sit up. Finally some way she could get some answers.

_Where is the traveler?_ She heard him ask in his native tongue making her smirk. He was on screen waiting for her. It seemed no matter where she went she always was stirring up trouble… well more often than not. Maybe she was jeopardy friendly as the Doctor tended to put it. Either way it made her life interesting. She just needed to make sure this time she didn't come close to death. Yup, staying alive was definitely high on the priority list. The Judoon lifted her up to stand moved her to stand before the screen where she was looking at the Rhino before her.

"Commander," Rose greeted him in his own language making the commander look at her closer than before. "I want to know why the Judoon are enforcing barbaric rules on the human race when they have no justification for such an imposition."

_Yeah way to sound all smart and diplomatic_, Rose mused to herself doing a little internal dance. Maybe her time at Torchwood was paying off after all. That or the three other treaties she had managed to make between races over the past few months. She was becoming quite skilled at this. Perhaps this could be a future job down the line if needed. She was definitely in need of a promotion once this was all done or at least a significant pay raise.

"We have our orders," the Commander countered.

"You must be insane," Rose replied simply. "The Shadow Proclamation would never allow the Judoon to restrict a Level Five planet. You're essentially dooming the human race by doing this."

"What do you know of the Shadow Proclamation?" He demanded.

"You wear their markings on your uniform," Rose commented. "Now can someone explain to me why you are violating at least eighteen separate clauses alone by being here and restricting the movement of humans?"

The Commander stayed silence for a moment before he ordered, "Bring her before the council."

_Oh bloody hell,_ Rose grunted as the screen shut off and she was led towards a transporter. She hated those things almost as bad as traveling through the void. This was going to be interesting.

"The Wolf speak Judoon and knows of the Shadow Proclamation," Black commented. "Humans shouldn't know of these things."

"She's a traveler who has fought amongst armies and races alike," White replied. "I thought you would approve of her tendency towards chaotic scenes."

"I prefer when she is the cause rather than the stopper," Black stated and White had to chuckle. "I have to wonder however with the more of these situations she finds herself in, how much the Wolf is going to change into the Warrior that the Doctor loathes. He abhors violence yet he has created the perfect situation in the Wolf's life to fashion herself into a soldier."

"It is in her very nature alone to be a fighter, a warrior," White commented. "That is why we chose her as our Champion."

Black turned back to survey the scene, "I do still have to wonder what his thoughts will be once he discovers the lengths she has gone to in order to return to him."

"I doubt she will divulge the details of her travels," White replied. "The Bad Wolf was born to protect the Doctor and she will do that to the extent of protecting him from what she has done as well."

Rose ignored the sickening feeling in her stomach as she was transported to the main base where the Judoon appeared to be operating out of for this massive scheme. She maneuvered through the halls led by the various soldiers until she reached what seemed to be a conference room of some sort where the commander was sitting at the head of the table. Well this seemed interesting. Rose was sat down at a chair near the commander where she sighed and adjusted to sit comfortably now that she wasn't being manhandled by rhinos.

"Who are you?" The commander asked.

"A traveler just passing by," Rose answered simply.

"The Shadow Proclamation has no record whatsoever of a representative being on Earth in this time," he replied.

Rose just smirked, "I'm not claiming to be a representative of Earth; just a knowledgeable traveler who realizes that you're not doing what you're supposed to be doing."

"You are prepared to speak on behalf of the Human Race," The Commander stated rather than asking as a question.

_Here we go again,_ Rose thought. "For now sure. I have questions that I want answered. Namely why are you here?"

"Earth is no longer deemed a Class 5 Planet," The Commander said simply surprising Rose. "They have elevated to a potential threat to other life forms and as such need regulation until they no longer are a threat."

"What did they do?" Rose asked confused.

"They shot down the Sycorax with advanced weaponry seized from alien technology that was not developed by them," he began.

"Scavenging is not forbidden under the Proclamation and acting in self-defense upon an invasion is allowed," Rose answered with ease.

"They used seized Sontaran ships to launch weaponry into the surrounding space and attacked a non-aggressor moving through the solar system, killing 382 life forms," The Commander commented.

Rose winced, _that was bad_. "The human race is young by intergalactic standards. They need to be informed of what exists beyond their immediate skies. You can't punish them for violating a law or standard that they do not even know exists. You need to educate the people. Did the humans attempt contact this vessel?"

The Commander paused as he looked at her slightly angry, "They did."

Now they were getting somewhere, Rose mused as she looked him straight in the eye asking, "Did the vessel respond?"

"They did not," he answered.

"Then by standards of aggression established and outlined, the humans perceived a threat, although it was not actually truth," Rose replied. "Mistake of fact that led to loss of life which is tragic, but given your lack of enforcement of laws which lead to this planet consistently getting attacked, invade, or hosted means that the humans have determined that the rest of space is enough of a risk that they need to defend themselves. The right to protection is one that is inherent to all species and you can't punish them for that. Furthermore, you have no right to restrict the movement of the civilians who did nothing wrong beyond perhaps electing politicians who made the decision for them to act negligently."

Silence fell between the two and Rose spared a look at the soldiers along the walls of the room listening in on the discussion. The very nature of the Judoon did not allow for any emotions to really be expressed, but the air in the room was enough of an indication. Rose was walking a fine line here and that was certain enough.

"What are your requests?" The Commander asked.

"You appoint someone to serve as ambassador to the Earth population. Pull your soldiers out but if you deem it necessary you can leave a security group if you must. Allow the humans to continue on, but use that ambassador to inform and educate Earth about the laws that they must follow," Rose reasoned. "The human population needs to learn about what is beyond their immediate atmosphere, and that ambassador can serve in that role. They can learn about the rules and laws that govern this universe and maybe then they will make the conscious decision not to act negligently anymore."

The Commander then stood and Rose stood as well, "I will pass your requests to the proclamation. You will remain in our custody until an arrangement has been met."

The Commander left and Rose just smirked as she stayed standing in his wake. _Fifth negotiation so far a success_. She chuckled as she turned to her escorts. _Eat your heart out Doctor_.

Eighteen hours later, Rose appeared back in the Torchwood lab and had the team waiting for her to tell them whether they were successful or not. She shook her head making them sigh as they returned to work, cataloguing the information and filing that universe away as a bust.

"How'd it go?" Mickey asked.

"Got to negotiate with Space Rhinos," Rose retorted simply.

"Judoon on Earth? Why?" Jake questioned confused.

Rose shrugged, "We defended ourselves too good in a few situations. No worries though. I managed to fix it all up."

"You think you're just so smart doing all these negotiations," Mickey smirked.

Rose grinned as she drawled in true Doctor Fashion, "Well…"

"Oh shut up," Mickey grunted in response and Rose chuckled as she made her way to her office.

One more trip down for the records log. As she stepped in her office she reached in her pocket to pull out the gift she had been given. It was a coin of some sort which apparently would, if she ever came across the Judoon again, identify her as an ally rather than a threat immediately saving her trouble. Apparently should an unworthy person attempt to hold the coin it would heat up and burn in their hand and cause them to drop it. Yet another ally and trinket to add to her collection…

And this one looked pretty cool. Space Rhinos apparently had some decent bling…


	10. Chapter Nine

"_Tell me would you kill to save a life?_

_Tell me would you kill to prove you're right?'_

_- 'Hurricane' 30 Seconds to Mars_

It was Rose's fifty-sixth trip when she came across the worst land she had ever experienced before. The minute she landed Rose immediately smelled the burning wood and rubber and complete destruction around her. She looked up at the sky and found it filled with smoke that was burning red with the sunset. Rose ran into an alley hiding as she looked out at the streets where she heard screams. She watched as families huddled in their houses horrified and scared. Rose could hear the sounds of marching in the air and her mind started racing through the possibilities of who might be invading. It was only a few minutes later that she heard one soldier approaching letting out a war call:

"Sontar-HA! Sontar-HA!" He yelled loudly in a chant.

Rose's blood ran cold. Sontarans were fierce warriors who she hated with a passion from her time at Torchwood. Initially she regarded them as nothing more than feisty Mr. Potato Heads, but once she saw their true war tactics come to life she knew that they were more deadly than they appeared. Merciless was their very nature and if they were invading this earth than Rose was going to need more help than not to survive this endeavor. She looked around for anything she could use as a weapon and when she saw what was lying in a nearby lawn Rose surveyed the area before she sprinted and dove rolling on the ground to grab the shovel as she crouched behind the brick wall watching as the Sontaran neared. What she would do for a gun right now…

_No, please run, _Rose mentally pleaded as she watched a family scrambling towards their house. Sontarans were beasts as Rose saw this warrior arm his gun she flinched. The family ran as fast as they could: mother and father running with their two children, a son and daughter, aged thirteen and three respectively it seemed.

"Return to your residence or be taken prisoner by the Sontaran Empire," He ordered fiercely.

_RUN! _Rose mind screamed and they did so but in doing so as the Sontaran neared the daughter fell and tripped. Rose's mind went completely blank in a sheer panic as her heart raced. She found her feet moving before she could even realize what was going on and started sprinting.

"Human scum!" He announced as he raised his gun to shoot the terrified girl, causing the mother to scream. "Prepare to die for the glory of the Sontaran Empire!"

Just as he went to pull the trigger the family heard a loud bang and the Sontaran fell to his knees before collapsing to the ground revealing Rose armed with the shovel. _Hit them in the vents,_ Rose mentally reminded herself as she saw him go down. She tossed the shovel to the side reaching down and grabbing the gun before she offered a hand to the child pulling her up.

"Go to your family now," Rose said firmly and the girl nodded as she ran towards her father. "Get inside. All of you and hide."

"Please," the mother answered. "You can hide with us. Come."

Rose looked at the woman stunned at how she didn't even know this woman and was standing with a gun and she was offering to let her into their home. Rose nodded and followed them, running the rest of the distance to their home where they locked the doors and drew the shades. She noticed immediately that this was a house of refugees stacked with people in various state of health. She was immediately stunned as she saw people from the age of three to eighty lining the home. This was completely deplorable; no one should have to live like this.

"What happened here?" Rose asked the father of the children.

"You don't know?" He asked skeptically. "How can you not know what's going on?"

Rose sighed, "I'm a traveler. Please?"

He looked her over before he nodded, leading her to the kitchen which had less people in it, "My name is Timothy. Four months ago the first Sontaran ships came and waged war with the planet. They've taken most of the land and humans as a cloning planet. The rest of us are just waiting to be converted or used as slaves."

"Dear god," Rose whispered as she looked at the people around her. "Who is still fighting?"

"No one," Timothy scoffed as he looked at her stunned. "There's no way to defeat these things. How you took that one down I have no idea-"

"There's a vent at the back of their suit by their neck," Rose cut him off as she thought of what she could possibly do to help them. "One solid whack there and it stuns them into unconsciousness. You should have a few hours. Otherwise they're like us when it comes to wounds from bullets. You just have to aim at their heads as their armor is quite impervious to standard bullets."

Timothy looked at Rose confused, "Just who are you?"

Rose smiled sadly at him, "A traveler as I said, nothing more. How can I help?"

Before Timothy could answer the three year old walked up to Rose, pulling on her hand and making her turn to look at the child. Timothy immediately went to push the child away from Rose, but Rose ignored it as she crouched down to the child's level. The girl said nothing but just pulled Rose into a tight hug. Initially she flinched but reached around and hugged the girl back. She was so small; much like Tony was now back home if she ever saw him again. Every hop was always a risk and Rose never knew if one of these times they would end up bringing her body back rather than her strolling through. Closing her eyes Rose rested her head against the child's with a sigh as she ignored the single tear she let fall.

"It's alright," Rose said softly to her, pulling away to look at the girl. "I'm going to do whatever I can to keep you safe."

"Promise?" She whispered and Rose nodded.

Rose looked up at Timothy and saw the look on his face; it was one she had seen a few times before in the other worlds she had traveled to before engaging in battle. This man and these refugees were likely ready to begin a rebellion anew if Rose ever saw it. Sighing, Rose turned back to the girl with a sigh as she reached in her pocket and held out something for the girl.

"Here," Rose smiled as she held out the small piece of candy. "Just between us okay?"

She nodded and grinned at Rose as she took the small candy in joy that made Rose's heart ache. She had to do something to help these people, but one person cannot take on an entire Sontaran invading army.

"Charity, go with your mother dear," Timothy ordered with a gentle tone sending the girl away as Rose straightened. "You want to know what you can do to help. Tell us everything you know about these things."

Rose sighed but did so. She told them about how they were a very militant species of alien that needed to clone in order to reproduce. She explained when she had come across them before and how she had learned their weakness with the vents. Eventually they began to build a strategy as Rose learned that they patrolled in pairs. If they were able to knock out enough via the vents they could get the guns and perhaps make somewhat of a stand against them. Finally one of the other men stepped up to Timothy with a sigh.

"Why don't you just show her already," he stated confusing Rose completely.

Timothy sighed as he looked at Rose before nodding for her to follow. She was led along with a few others down to a door which led them into the cellar where she was instantly stunned at what she saw. There was an armada of guns stockpiled. Not nearly enough to stop the fleet but enough to definitely put on a fight. She had asked who was still fighting and now she had her answer. It was this group of rebels in the end. Somehow she always managed to find the fighters no matter where she went; perhaps there was such a thing as fate out there.

Rose turned to Timothy, "So what do you all do exactly? How did you get this many weapons?"

"We make raids during the night to do what we can," Timothy answered. "We're not the type to sit back when they attack us."

They worked late into the night, Rose trying to keep in mind that she had no idea when she would be taken home. As they gathered in the basement, Rose, Timothy, and fifteen others they created their main plan and they snuck out to initiate it. Tonight would be the night Rose accompanied them on a Sontaran raid to see how they worked exactly. Rose crouched in a few bushes with Timothy beside her as they watched the patrol pass them. Rose pointed to her own back showing about where the vents were and Timothy looked closer seeing exactly what she was talking about.

"Do not hold back. Hit it as hard as you possibly can," Rose whispered. "Ready?"

Timothy nodded and so they struck. Rose moved silently which surprised her cohorts as she raised the rubber mallet and slammed the one closest to her as hard as she could, sending him to the ground. Timothy swung taking down the other with almost as much relative ease. As soon as the bodies hit the ground, the others ran out dragging the bodies into hiding where they stole the weapons and stood above the Sontarans. Rose stood next to Nikola as he aimed his gun and shot one of the Sontarans dead. The others looked at her waiting for her to kill the other and she was torn.

These aliens she knew to be completely indifferent to any suffering around them; merely tools to complete a mission. They had tortured and tormented these people for months and would likely for years to come until they got what they needed. Rose swallowed hard as she lifted the gun and fired, killing the Sontaran. She had finally answered the question that Pete had asked her long ago. In her travels she had killed before yes, but that was while she was being actively pursued or shot at herself. Never had she proactively killed another being of any kind. Pete had taken her aside one night as Jackie was placing Tony to bed before her first hop and asked her a simple question: _Would you kill to save a life?_

The question had taken Rose off guard but as she walked back with the others to the next ambush point she knew what she had done and how that question was finally answered. _Kill another to save the lives of even one innocent? _Any day. Did that make her a warrior and a soldier and everything that the Doctor was against? Possibly. She remembered back years ago when the Doctor replied that he would rather be a coward than kill others to achieve an objective, but Rose looked at her options now. She was fighting for innocence and she would do so any day. She only hoped that the Doctor wouldn't look at her any different if he found out just exactly she had been forced to do during her travels.

Two more hours later they returned with six more weapons after successfully stopping a few patrols nearby. They added them to the weapons that the group had already stockpiled and Rose found herself sitting amongst them in the living room in silence. They were everywhere on the spectrum. Rose watched as a woman rocked her infant to sleep, an elderly man slept with his wife in a corner, a teenager sat sharpening what he could of his knife. They were all lost travelers and needed help in any way they could get it. Rose allowed herself to relax with them which was a mistake as they heard the sound of marching once more fill the streets.

Timothy's eyes widened, "Everyone do what we normally do. Those who can grab arms, everyone else in the cellar now!"

"This a regular occurrence?" Rose asked stunned.

"Whenever we make a raid as we did tonight they do patrols and get revenge in some way," Nicola spat as he armed his weapon. "So far we have avoided being the household that's gotten annihilated but in case we're not lucky this time we always stand ready."

Rose looked at them stunned; what did they mean annihilated? She got up, running to the window where she watched as about thirty Sontarans busted in the house across the street and started shooting. Screams of horror and terror filled the air and Rose felt sick. Turning to her side, she took the gun that Timothy offered her.

"We have to do something," Rose pleaded.

"It's not us," Timothy countered.

"But they are! They're humans as you are. There are children in that house. Listen to their screaming! You're the only ones who have the ability to fight but you hide and cower instead like selfish cowards," Rose spat at them all before she armed the gun, moving toward the door.

A big burly man held the door knob blocking her way as she approached it, fueling her anger until she looked him in the eye ready to fight him to get through the door if needed. He turned to the others and Rose turned to see about ten people behind her waiting to go. Timothy still stood at the window unmoving but the others were ready.

"Ready when you are," Nicola whispered.

With that they flung the door open and engaged in battle. Since the Sontarans were mainly focusing on the house across the way most of their backs were turned and they never saw it coming. With quick ease Rose fired and took out at least three before the others even managed to get out of the door. Torchwood had taught her well it seemed. Shots filled the air and Rose moved with military ease and grace to the front fence where she knelt behind cover firing along with the others. The engagement seemed to go on forever and the noise was almost deafening as Sontarans were yelling, people were screaming, and guns were firing left and right. Rose paused to turn to her comrades in arms who were standing firm except for two who were taken down while trying to get to cover. That was when she noticed the teenager who had been accompanying Timothy earlier when she had first met him.

His son was firing at the enemy, but his gun malfunctioned at the wrong time. Seeing the Sontaran at the side about to fire and more likely than not kill the kid, Rose abandoned her cover and took off running. She would not let an innocent die on her watch. Sprinting across open fire, Rose felt her nerves turn to ice as she ignored the shots flying by. She reached the son and tackled him just as the Sontaran fired. Her actions making one of the rebels turn and kill the Sontaran on the flank. Rose hit the ground hard, her body covering the teenager completely from any potential harm as he looked at her stunned. Rose breathed heavily at the exertion and noted that the air was finally beginning to silence. She looked down at the teenager and then she saw the panic in his eyes. She was completely confused until suddenly she looked down and saw the blood on his chest. She looked at him for injury but froze as she saw the blood dripping from a gouge in her jacket. _How the hell did that get there?_

"Dad! Help her!" he screamed as the rebels began to clear the area and bring the families from across the street in to safety.

Nicola and Timothy ran over, pulling Rose off the teenager and she found herself on her back staring up at the black sky. _One, two, three, four, five, six stars visible. Better than other worlds_, Rose mused feeling her body being jerked around before she looked down to see Timothy ripping her jacket open. That was when she saw the huge graze that had taken out a chunk of her side. Looking at the damage her eyes widened. Timothy immediately put pressure on the wound taking off his own shirt and using it as a bandage as he started yelling to the others just as some of the pain was starting to register in her mind.

Rose was staring at the blood seeping into the shirt easily as she had a realization that chilled her to the core. She had known that this may happen at some point in time, and although she thought that yes, maybe getting involved may mean this trip would be the one, she never dared believed it true. The blood soaking the shirt however answered that doubt for her.

_I'm not making it home. Oh god, I'm not making it home._


	11. Chapter Ten

"_Crash, crash, burn, let it all burn_

_This hurricane's chasing us all underground"_

_- 'Hurricane' 30 Seconds to Mars_

"That insolent selfish child!" Black roared as the Guardians gathered watching the events unfold.

Gold glared, her hair flaring back as her eyes burned looking at the man across from her, "Just because you wish for destruction and chaos does not mean that one's valiant efforts to prevent such destruction and pain for others is insolent or selfish. Greater love hath no man-"

"Than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends," Black finished disdainfully. "Human religion is not prophecy Gold. Don't let your perception of beauty in sacrifice taint what we are to accomplish here today. The Wolf is dying and she hasn't completed her objective. Should she fail, we will all cease to exist. Everything to include us for once. Excuse me if I find frustration in her negligence to let one life end for the sake of the rest of existence."

"We must take action," Azure agreed. "We must handle it delicately. Black and White will go and ensure the Wolf's safety and accompany her to the void. Gold will ensure that she survives the journey through the void. Red?"

Red nodded just slightly, "That should work."

Black sneered as he stood, "Fine. Let us rescue the big, bad Wolf."

* * *

Rose was slightly dazed as Nicola and Timothy picked her up, bringing her into the safety of the house as they locked it up once more and all were taking care of business with a few gathered around. Rose let her gaze move and saw the three year old girl, _Charity _her mind reminded her_,_ looking at her wide eyed. Ignoring the pain and mental anguish as she remembered Tony she looked at Timothy desperately as the man was placing pressure on her wound.

"Did I save him? Is he okay?" Rose asked weakly.

"Yes, Andrew is perfectly fine," Timothy reassured her.

_Andrew; perfect strong name for a teenager engaging in warfare_, Rose mentally mused as she thought of the panic the boy had expressed at the sight of her blood. _He would see a lot more of that in this world unfortunately_. Rose relished in the idea that she had at least shared all of her knowledge of the Sontarans with these rebels and gave them the information that would be necessary for them to hopefully survive a short time longer than they would have without her. These people looked as though they would survive; they had the strength that others apparently lacked in this world. That fact alone made Rose relax just slightly as she looked at them all before turning her gaze once more.

"What of the others?" Rose asked looking at Timothy.

He avoided her gaze, looking at Nicola who ended up speaking, "Two of ours."

"Please," Rose whispered weaker than before with a slight groan as a stab of pain shot through her system again.

"Eight men, three women, and four children across the way," Timothy answered angrily as he looked at Rose. "I should have listened to you-"

"It's not your fault," Rose told him gently, her body was starting to relax and she was losing focus which should scare her, but she couldn't find herself worried at the moment.

Overall she was worried of the implications that her death meant for not only these people but for everyone. Before she could worry too much however she heard people moving as loud sounds came from outside. She couldn't let them die now after all that they had done. There were already children who were dead because she didn't act fast enough; please let this not be more soldiers.

"Sontar-HA! Sontar-HA!" The chant sounded from outside and Rose watched as Andrew ran to the window making her tense.

"Da, there's at least fifty," Andrew said panicked. "Coming down the road."

Before anyone in that house could take action however there was a loud booming sounding from outside and a gust of wind blew all of the windows out showering people in glass and sending Andrew flying back to the ground in shock. In the middle of the pandemonium two figures appeared in the street facing the oncoming Sontaran soldiers. Black smiled as he lowered his head slightly and his eyes flashed in pure delight. White on the other hand sighed as he looked at the bodies littering the yards and the destruction.

"You get the Wolf, leave them to me," Black stated in excitement that was surrounded with dark energy.

"Black-" White began as Black's hands started to crackle with unadulterated energy.

"Chaos is all mine. This is what I exist for," Black grinned before he moved forward, launching pure energy at the Sontarans who started to go down in a fight where they stood no chance with a manic laugh in the air.

White turned towards the house containing Rose and inside everyone was frozen at terror at what Black was doing and how they had appeared out of nowhere. With no resistance, White managed to open the door which had been locked. The house was silent, but at least thirty guns were aimed at him as he looked around the room before his eyes settled on Rose. She looked on the edge of life itself and that sight alone made White sigh. _Oh Wolf…_

"Please," He offered the group nodding at Rose. "Let me."

No one moved initially before they finally began clearing a way for him to maneuver towards where Rose was bleeding.

White moved through the crowd to where Rose lay pale and slowly dying as she looked at him, "It is time we finally meet My Wolf although I have had my eye on you for some time."

At the name Rose's eyes fought to focus as she looked at the Guardian before her trying to find the words to explain what she had done, "I couldn't let them die."

"We know," White answered. "That is why we are here."

"Let me guess," Rose said weakly but with a slight smirk. "You're White."

The Guardian smiled with a nod of his own, "As I said, it is time we met Wolf since the others have had the pleasure. Rest child; it is our turn to keep watch over the world."

The group watched transfixed as the Sontarans' yells in the background filled the air as Black continued to wage war against them. White rested his hand on her forehead, pulling Rose into a deep slumber so her body could save the energy it would need to heal. Stepping back Timothy and Nicola allowed White to raise his hands, palms up and Rose's body lifted in the air, limply, but still so gracefully. White then turned to them all looking them in the eye.

"Let her story guide you. The purest of sacrifice can be a motivator for greatness," White instructed. "You can win if you keep that purity and hope for something better."

With a bright flash of light he was gone as was Rose and the room was standing in silence and awe as they fought to understand what had just happened to them. The only evidence that this was real and not a mass hallucination was the blood that still soaked into the couch and the bodies outside. How to explain this one… White traveled through space to the opening in the void where Rose had appeared to find his companions. Gold was waiting almost anxiously, eyes still blazing as she looked at Rose's body hovering in the air in stasis. She sighed as she rested her hand on Rose's wound.

"Only enough so that they can heal her," Red instructed, stepping over.

"Balance is key," Azure agreed stepping out as well. "We are not to intervene more than necessary."

Gold closed her eyes, a mist drawing from her as it gathered at the wound site and deeper healing taking place at an advanced rate. Removing her hand the wound was still there, but Rose's heart was no longer as weak and struggling to maintain its rhythm.

"I will take her through the void," Gold stated turning to her counterparts with a nod. "Until we rejoin my friends."

* * *

The Torchwood team was monitoring the cannon and readings as they waited. It had only been two hours when sudden readings began to pick up and spike as though they were pulling Rose back. Pete received a phone call that something was wrong and blanked out as he ran as fast as he could towards the lab wondering what had happened. When he arrived it was full blown chaos in the room as the technicians and scientists were moving around yelling and tossing things around as they tried to figure out what was going on with the cannon. The dimension cannon was lit up and acting as though Rose were making the fight back, but it was hours before schedule and no one had triggered the return protocols. She wasn't even supposed to be back here for at least…

His thought process was cut short as the void opened and lightening crackled along with a bright light that was new before Rose's body appeared and the void closed leaving her body lying unmoving. Jake ran forward, seeing the blood as he grabbed a bandana from his pocket and used it to put pressure on the bleeding wound and the technicians yelled for a medical team. Her body was damn near broken as it lay there. She was covered in dirt looking as though she had gotten in a fight with her hair a mess. Her jacket was missing and there was blood coating most of her clothing as Rose lay unconscious. This was one of the worse situations they had experienced so far.

"How did she get back?" Pete demanded of the team who were frantically trying to find the answers themselves.

"We don't know sir. It wasn't us," one answered as Mickey yelled at the sight of the medical team, directing them over to the platform.

Pete watched as Rose was put on a gurney before she was rushed out towards the operating rooms where the doctors hoped to save her life. In her wake the team was standing in stunned and confused silence. The cannon was now back in idle mode and the only sign that chaos had really just torn through the room were the papers randomly littering the floor along with the blood on the platform. The worst part was no one knew what the hell had just happened although they were all grateful that it had as it looked that Rose was on her last limb when it came to fighting to stay alive. They needed answers and the only one who could provide them was currently fighting for her life.

"Clean it up!" Pete barked before turning to move after the medical team.

By the time he arrived towards the medical wing they already were bringing Rose into the surgical area to begin fixing what had been done. Pete knew he would have to call Jackie and let her know that Rose was back, yet he couldn't move at all until he knew how his daughter was doing. So the wait began as they stood watching the doctors' frantically work before eventually it seemed they fell into a calmer state. Pete was joined by Jake and Mickey a few minutes later and they stood outside the room while the doctors worked to stop the bleeding and repair the damage. Seven hours later, a doctor stepped out and turned to them with a small smile.

"We're lucky," He stated simply. "It appears as though the wound had already started to heal in the deeper sections so we were able to just fix up the rest. She's lost a lot of blood which was the main issue but a couple transfusions will fix that. She will be alright; just a scar."

"What was it?" Jake asked.

The doctor shrugged, "It looks like some sort of bullet wound from the way it cut through her. She got shot by some high energy beam."

Pete breathed a sigh of relief along with the others, "When can we see her?"

"Miss Tyler will be asleep for quite some time. We're going to finish cleaning her up and then we'll move her into her own room. You can see her then," the doctor explained before he returned back into the room where they were doing as he said.

"You want me to call Jackie?" Mickey asked of his boss.

Pete shook his head, "I should be the one to do it."

Two more hours later, the only ones in the hospital room were Jake, Mickey, Pete, and Jackie who finally arrived. Tony was asleep curled upon a couch in the corner while the others waited around. Rose's body had begun to get its color back and she looked as though she was just sleeping rather than unconscious under the pull of drugs. No more were there traces of how bloodied she had been or the dirt marring her skin. She simply looked as though she was resting.

"What happened?" Jackie had asked of the men.

Unfortunately no one, not even the technicians had an answer for that. No one had a clue as to how Rose managed to fight her way back through the void to get home and to safety. No one knew anything whatsoever and that was the most frustrating part of it all. They would have to wait for Rose to wake up and from the sounds of it that would take days.

"We need to set up production on communication," Pete stated and Jake nodded.

While waiting for Rose to wake up that's what the technicians focused on. Although they didn't know Rose personally, having worked as a crew these past few months they were invested in the project overall. Even though the large team may not know every single member personally they cared so much for one another that Pete watched them work late over the next few days just to brainstorm new ideas. They would figure this out somehow. They had to; it's what family does for each other.


	12. Chapter Eleven

"_No matter how many deaths that I die I will never forget_

_No matter how many lives I live, I will never regret_

_There is a fire inside of this heart_

_And a riot about to explode into flames."_

_- 'Hurricane' 30 Seconds to Mars_

"You took quite the unnecessary risk during your last trip Wolf."

Rose just grunted as she found herself standing in the fields of, where was it again… Kormidor that was it. Red was standing across from her once more and Rose shook her head. Guardians swoop in and save the day when she messed up it seemed. Rose felt slightly ashamed though at the fact that they had to do that. She knew the severity of what task she had laying head of her, but no matter what she could not let herself stand back and let someone get hurt when she could do something, anything to help them out. That was against her very nature and although she felt slightly disappointed that she put them in that situation, she couldn't find it within herself to apologize.

"Surprised you didn't let me die," Rose retorted simply.

Red smiled, "Well despite some of the others' frustration we saw the need for your continued efforts and also may have seen the right in what you were trying to accomplish for those people. Your actions were just and as a result we did what needed to be done."

"So I'm just asleep again right now," Rose stated running her hands over the tall grass smiling at how real it felt underneath her hands.

"Healing. The doctors have placed you under a large amount of medication to prevent infection and reduce your pain to facilitate advanced healing. You should be fine in a matter of weeks. Gold ensured that the worst of the damage was healed," Red replied.

"I saw one of you that I had never seen before," Rose commented looking up at Red. "A man dressed in White."

"Order and light," Red answered simply. "He and his counterpart were sent to ensure your safety and the safety of the others involved. It's been two days since you left them and they have managed to help save dozens."

Rose sighed contently, "So it wasn't for nothing."

"Not at all," Red agreed. "You are so close to achieving your goal Wolf. Soon you will find what you are looking for. You need to hold onto that strength and never lose sight of what you have ahead."

"I've already made countless hops," Rose retorted. "Every day more options and possibilities pop up. How could I possibly be closer than ever when the walls are tearing down even more every second of every day?"

Red just smiled, "You just need to trust in us. I speak only the truth Wolf."

Rose almost growled in frustration yet she knew Red was right. Still Rose felt so frustrated with what had happened. Yes she had saved Andrew but the time she spent arguing with Timothy had led to others dying across the way and she would never be able to go back and save those people. At least she had set the steps in motion to hopefully enable them to survive, but as of now she was almost lost in her own head. Months she had spent traveling and hopping between worlds meeting all various forms of life and she still had nothing to show for it beyond a couple trinkets she had picked up and a few new scars. After this trip she would have one more to show and mark her travels through the void.

"Soon," Red repeated looking Rose straight in the eye. "Very soon."

"Promise?" Rose responded.

Red smiled, "You have my word."

* * *

Rose lay unconscious for three days as the team rotated through the room keeping a close watch over her, silently debating whether or not this was all worth it in the end. Was it worth continuing these travels if she came back with these injuries? Jackie was the one in the end who was sitting beside the bed when Rose finally began to awaken from underneath the pull of the drugs and medication. When asked about this moment later on, Jackie would recall that this was the moment any doubts in her mind were swept clean that they were doing the right thing. She knew that Rose would continue fighting no matter what because once she woke up and her eyes focused she looked at her mom and said her first words in days:

"I was too late to save them all."

It was a soft whisper, but Jackie knew that her daughter wouldn't be giving up after that. Her voice was so disappointed in herself and heartbroken with an undertone that Jackie recalled hearing back in the early Doctor's voice when he would square off with frightening enemies with the determination of saving all that he could. Flagging that universe's signature as a no go, physical therapy and healing time was met with more brainstorming from the dimension cannon team over the next couple weeks. They realized they needed a better recall plan so they focused more on developing similar devices that they had used earlier to pull Rose back from the alternate universes. More development planning went into creating a cell phone that could reach across to the control team.

Seven months or so Rose had been traveling and in her month or so back while she was healing she managed to knock out a few more classes for her degree. Jackie finally had found out that Rose was back in school between her hops when one night she found her daughter asleep with her head in a book on quantum physics. Recognizing that Rose didn't want a scene made over this fact, Jackie just hugged her daughter and helped put her to bed before telling Rose how proud she was. Not bad for a girl who took a few years off to travel the universe and dropped out of school. Jackie knew that the Doctor had done great things for her daughter by making her stronger, but now she realized that maybe she had helped Rose learn more than she ever could in school. Rose was on her way to being a college graduate and that was enough to make Jackie proud for the rest of her life.

It was a week before Rose was to return to Torchwood to do her next launch through the dimension cannon when she finally had that moment where she realized what exactly had happened to her. Rose was having tea with her mother one evening when Tony accidentally knocked over a vase shattering it. As Tony turned to the two in a panic his face made Rose flash back to Charity in that other world. _She was safe_, Rose reminded himself as she recalled the words of the Red guardian but Rose couldn't forget her horror and terror at the hands of the Sontarans and that started the downward spiral. Other children had died across the street from the one where Rose had met the rebels. Children and adults had died; annihilated to use their words just to get revenge for one Sontaran. Jackie called Pete from the other room to take Tony as Jackie took Rose's hands in her own, trying to pull her daughter back.

Seven minutes and twenty-three minutes of hyperventilating, eight minutes and thirteen seconds of tears and hugs, and finally Rose told her mother what really happened. Rose explained how she was stupid and got herself involved to begin with to save Charity, how she had gotten shot while trying to protect Andrew, and in the end Jackie was even more proud of her daughter. It took quite some time before Jackie managed to convince Rose that she had done the right thing; well at least convinced her that she could do many more great things and had learned from that experience. The talk did prove to be therapeutic however because a week later Rose felt ready to go; no longer afraid of what was ahead after what she had already seen. She had been involved where some people had died but now she could keep fighting on to make sure that no one else died on her watch.

So there she stood, forty-three days after waking up and the only visible reminder of that war torn world was a pink scar on Rose's side and a fiercer determination. She had to keep going; more and more stars were disappearing and an apocalypse waits for no one. She bought a new outfit to match her old one and once more stood in the lab donning her battle armor. The team wouldn't admit to it but seeing Rose standing there in those clothes again looking as though nothing was wrong beyond her taking an extended vacation brought them so much joy. Having watch her fly back through the void bloodied and broken had hurt them all in so many ways they didn't want to admit. Some were traumatized to the point where they had questioned whether or not to continue working for this project, but now as they were watching Rose step forward again in her armor they knew it was going to be okay. They were going to do it. They were going to keep pushing on and they would succeed because the universe needed them to.

Mentally Rose thought she was ready to go or at least convinced everyone else she was. Spending these past weeks with Tony had helped her mentally to recover from the thought that children had died from her hesitation to action, but reminded her that she had helped save others. Mickey and Jake had been the best of friends anyone could have as they helped her recover during physical therapy to build back her strength so she was ready to go and fight anything else that may come before her. She was ready, her doctors had told her so, but there was a small seed of doubt in her mind even still. That moment with her mother helped tremendously, but how much could one wipe that experience from their lives? She had seen so much already, been hurt so much as well, but now she had to suck it up and push it away to continue on. She would press on.

Rose moved to stand on the platform and took a deep breath. It was time to jump again. She nodded to the control team and then was time to continue the hunt. She felt the pull of the void; electricity pulling at her as the coldness sucked at her bones. Rose fought with everything she could find within herself in order to reach that opening that they had identified, and finally her fight was won as she came flying out of the void, running and slowing to a stop as she looked around to survey her surroundings for danger.

_No zeppelins. No alien ships. Single sun in the sky with normal coloring. Humans moving around looking normal with no strange or extra add-ons. No marching, no gunfire, nothing out of the ordinary. _

It looked modern so Rose walked down the residential area until she found a newspaper: 2008. Wrong time; still a little early perhaps. The newspaper was a familiar company and suddenly a wave of emotion hit Rose with a force of a semi-truck. This meant nothing, but she had a feeling that this world may be it after all the pain that she had endured. She felt a sob working its way up her throat and doubted whether or not she was trying this whole operation too soon after the hell of her last trip. The Guardians had told her to keep going and keep fighting because she was close and so she would, but right now there was a sea of doubt filtering through her system even still.

"Are you okay dear?" an elderly voice asked, hesitation in his voice as Rose turned and he saw her stunned expression.

"Yeah sorry," Rose replied, breathing deep to regain her composure. "This may sound strange, but has anything hokey happened recently?"

"No not really," he admitted. "Everyone's more caught up in the whole Adipose craziness."

That caught Rose's attention, "Adipose craziness you say?"

Rose listened as the man explained how a company known as Adipose Industries was claiming a diet pill could make people's fat melt away. Rose decided to stay around just to see what this was all about and she definitely made the right decision. She ran to a library where she started looking up the details and found that there was definitely something hokey about it. However while she was also at the library Rose started looking up the details of this world and her heart skipped a beat as she read the details of Canary Wharf. Her name was listed amongst that of the dead. She did it. She found her home. Sitting back in awe, Rose let a few tears fall. Soon had been an understatement.

Armed with the knowledge that this was home, Rose left the library knowing that if there was something going on that the Doctor would be here. She ran around town and as she stood down in a residential area surrounded by cops after watching the small little adipose babies floating up and away in a spaceship, she silently realized that the Doctor was here somewhere but she wouldn't be able to find him in all this chaos. Rose leaned against a police barrier smiling at the familiar reactions of everyone despite this fact. The post-chaos wonder and confusion as everyone began to scramble to justify everything that had just happened. Even Rose had to admit that those little adipose babies were quite cute.

Feeling a tingling on her skin, Rose noted she only had a few minutes, if that left, before she was pulled back to her Torchwood when someone came over grabbing her attention. Rose turned to look at the blunt redhead and had to smile at the grin on her face. This woman looked so thrilled; probably adrenaline running high from the scene tonight.

"Listen, there's this woman that's going to come along; a tall blond woman called Sylvia. Tell her that bin there. Right, it'll all make sense. That bin there," the redhead insisted as she backed up before turning and running off.

Rose shook her head at the woman with a sad smile. She couldn't remember the last time she had been that happy to be honest. Not even those nights playing with Tony where her little brother's happiness filled the rooms. Rose knew that she wouldn't be able to do as the woman asked; her alarm on her watch started to go off signaling it was time to get away from people. Rose turned finally letting the entirety of it all show on her body as she started walking away. She knew the Doctor had to be close but it wasn't meant to be. Not now, not yet anyways.

She stated to make her walk off and mid stride felt the pull from the cannon and knew she disappeared in mid-stride. Close, but they would soon be closer. She had found her Earth; her home. Now it was up to the team to find the right time to find her Doctor. She now understood what Red had meant when she said soon. They had found Earth, now it was time to find the Doctor.


	13. Chapter Twelve

"_But do not tell me all is fine_

_When I lose my head, I lose my spine."_

_- 'Hopeless Wanderer' Mumford and Sons_

Rose appeared back in the lab where the dimension cannon was housed to the team looking her over to make sure she was alright. Once they saw she was moving okay they started going back to their work when her words made everyone stop.

"I think we found it."

The room became so silent Rose swore she could hear everyone's breathing stop as Mickey stepped forward to look at her, "You found the right Earth?"

"Yeah, I'm positive," Rose stated.

Mickey walked over and pulled her into a tight hug as the team celebrated and started to do their work, flagging and identifying that particular hop as successful and realizing that now they could start to work on implementing their next technologies: transmats to travel freely between and around in the universes, and communications. They had so much to do now. Amidst the celebration Rose turned to see Pete walking in confused. He looked her over ensuring she was okay before raising a simple eyebrow.

"We found it," Rose grinned and Pete looked stunned. "I found the right universe."

The celebration though is short lived. Now it was time for their work to truly start. Rose once she completed the debrief process and after discussion they agreed that this was in fact the planet, she headed to the mansion to see her mother and Tony rather than heading back to her flat. Jackie saw Rose in her battle armor and stood up straight from where she was in the kitchen making tea instantly worried. Rose always took care to head home and change before seeing Tony so he didn't question why his sister always looked the same, but this time was different Jackie knew.

Rose walked over to her mom and hugged her, confusing Jackie even more until Rose explained, "I found it."

With those words, Jackie pulled Rose in a tight hug as she let out a sigh of relief. No more hellish hops where everyone wondered whether or not Rose would die in war or in a freak accident. Now they could start narrowing everything down, and so they did. The next two days were filled with the team analyzing results and information from this universe finding information slowly leaking to the dimension cannon which they discovered were timelines slowly unraveling and appearing.

"When you make the hop try this," Jake said handing the phone to Rose in addition to the one she already carried. "We worked it so you can reach us here we think."

Rose nodded, "Alright I'll call when I'm on the other side. Where am I going?"

"We're still trying to understand the timelines that are slowly appearing," Jake explained with a sigh looking at the monitors. "Most of them converge around one point but we can't figure out what it is yet or who it's tied to. So we're going to try and hop through around that timeframe. Can't guarantee it yet but better than some of the places you've been to I recon."

Rose smiled, "Yeah I guess you could say that. I'm going to try and contact him if he's not around."

Jake nodded as he held up a jump drive, "Find a computer with a webcam love. Should help you transmit."

Rose stepped forward taking it and pulling Jake into a hug, "Thanks."

"I like the world the way it is. You're just secondary here," Jake joked and Rose chuckled as she stepped back. "Have a good trip. See you in a few hours."

"See you in a few," Rose replied with a nod and she turned, jumping on the platform and turning to the team. "Let's do this."

And so the fight began once more as Rose worked her way through the void, appearing just on a road in the afternoon making a few people jump before she blended in. Rose smiled at the people walking before she pulled out her phone moving to the side on the sidewalk against a building and hitting the number in the phone's contact list. Placing it to her ear, she silently hoped and wished it would work and finally the line clicked.

"Who's afraid of the big bad wolf?"

Rose grinned at the sound of Jake's voice, "Not you which was your first mistake."

"Have a fun hop love. I'll pass on the good news," Jake replied before they hung up.

Well that took care of one of their projects; now Rose just had to try and contact the Doctor on this trip. Reading the newspapers briefly and managing to look at the news, nothing was going on that was anything special. That probably meant that the Doctor wouldn't be around at all. Rose sighed as she made her way down to one of the city libraries where she hid in the back corner as she found a computer with a webcam. Checking one more time that no one was looking she placed the jump drive in the computer and immediately the programming started taking over. Rose watched as a program booted and started working to analyze signals to try and find the TARDIS. She watched as a small screen in the corner showed her image loaded when all of a sudden a main screen appeared.

Rose watched as the fuzz started to clear up and she was looking through a screen into the TARDIS, her home for a couple years. Rose yelled for the Doctor, ignoring the looks from people on this side of the library but the signal shorted out after a couple minutes leaving her stunned. She had seen him. Her suit wearing, crazy haired, Doctor with that redhead she had seen during her last hop. _She must be his new companion_, Rose realized. They looked happy which made her heart break slightly before she realized that the Doctor must really not realize what was going on. Did he even realize that stars and planets were disappearing?

Rose sighed before she took the jump drive away and called Jake to have them pull her back. They needed to work on that transmat tech a little bit more and she needed to get within the right timeframe. Its' another four hops before Rose makes another successful transmission but once more the Doctor didn't see it just frustrating Rose further. While waiting for the next hop Rose steps beside Jake as they look at the clearer timelines seeing something change completely.

"What the hell was that?" Rose asked.

"I don't know," the technician answered working the data. "That convergence point just shifted completely and ends on this day at that specific time."

Rose looked at Jake as she said firmly, "Send me there."

Jake sighed but nodded and whistled to Mickey to tell Pete that they were making an early launch. Rose ran up and hopped on the cannon as they calibrated it before she was launched through. The void was particularly hellish this time around as though something was seriously wrong. Rose ignored the burning pain that came with the extreme cold before she appeared not too far from the Thames. Rose ran over to where there were police cars and ambulances to see the redhead coming towards her.

"What happened, what did they find?" Rose asked her panicked almost. "I'm sorry did they find someone?"

Donna just shrugged, "I don't know. A bloke called the Doctor... or something."

Rose felt her heart skip a beat as she heard the tone in Donna's voice, "Well, where is he?"

"They took him away. He's dead," Donna said.

That's why the timeline ended. They had isolated the Doctor and he had... This couldn't be possible; shouldn't be possible. Why wasn't Donna more upset about this? What the hell was going on?

"I'm sorry, did you know him? I mean... they didn't say his name," Donna added sounding apologetic. "Could be any doctor."

"I came so far," Rose whispered. _This didn't make any damn sense._

"It-it could be anyone," Donna stated and Rose paused looking at her.

This woman had been with the Doctor yet she that statement proved that she didn't know anything about who he was from the sound of it. _What was going on?! _Rose mentally screamed.

"What's your name?" Rose asked.

"Donna. And you?" She replied lightly.

Rose brushed the question off with practiced ease from her travels, "Oh I was just passing by; shouldn't even be here really. This is... wrong, it's wrong."

Rose looked at Donna closer noticing something attached to her back that Donna and everyone around her didn't even seem to notice. _I've seen that before,_ Rose mused as she racked her head and memories trying to remember where she had seen that. Was it in a book? She couldn't remember it on another planet so it had to have been in a book… Why the hell didn't Donna notice it?

"Sorry, what was it? Donna what?" Rose questioned, trying to sound nonchalant but apparently failing.

Donna narrowed her eyes, "Why do you keep looking at my back?"

Rose diverted her gaze to Donna's face, "I'm not."

"Yes you are. You keep looking behind me!" Donna protested almost sounding angry, but Rose's gaze shifted once more as she heard a clicking noise. "You're doing it now. What is it, what's there? Did someone put something on my back?"

Rose watched as Donna tried to look and took that opportunity to disappear. Moving silently she cut underneath the tape without getting caught by the officers. She saw an object lying on the ground and sprinted over, grabbing it just as an officer yelled in protest. Whipping her phone out as she started to run, Rose hit the phone number she needed.

"Jake now!" Rose yelled as she sprinted. "I need you to pull me!"

It took only thirty seconds before she came out sprinting off the dimension cannon into the lab out of breath as she stopped. Bent over at the waist, Rose rested her hands on her knees as she closed her eyes, one hand grasping the object. No one spoke right away as Jake started moving over while Rose caught her breath. That had been close. Four UNIT officers and three police officers were in pursuit and she had resorted to sprinting up a fire escape when she was finally pulled. Definitely going to have to work on cardio more.

"What was it? What happened?" Jake asked confused.

"It's wrong," Rose answered. "Something happened and spiraled the right world into an alternate universe itself. The Doctor died there Jake. Someone's rewriting time."

"What?" Mickey replied confused as he stepped over.

Rose stood up normally looking at them out of breath before she held up the object in her hand, the sonic screwdriver, "I need my books."

Rose stalked off to her office where she started shuffling through all her books determined to find what the hell that beetle was. Mickey and Jake follow her in moving out of her way as Rose starts pulling books from the various shelves and piling them on her desk. _Creatures, not time travel, _Rose mentally said as she skipped some books and pulled others. _Where is the damn book I'm looking for?!_

"Rose stop, what happened?" Mickey demanded.

Rose sighed as she looked at her friends, "I met the redhead, Donna. She didn't know who the Doctor was which means something is messing with her timeline and made it so she wasn't with him. I saw something, a bug or beetle on her back attached to her but she couldn't see it and didn't know about it."

"You're thinking it is some tech or something," Mickey reasoned.

Rose nodded, "I've seen it before when I was doing some reading I just need to find it so we can figure out what to do about it. That was our world and someone is messing with it. We have to fix it."

Jake sighed, "What can we do?"

When Pete found them an hour later they had taken over the meeting room. There were books littering the desk written in a variety of languages and there were two whiteboards containing sketches and random notes of words that he had no idea what the significance was. The team had called Pete to update him that the mission had ended early and Rose had come back with some devastating news, and apparently such news had spawned an impromptu research section.

"What is going on in here?" Pete finally asked with a sigh.

"Doctor died, Donna never met him, alternate universe created, we're going to squish the bug that did it," Jake summarized and Pete repeated the words in his head with a nod.

"So bug research got it," Pete sighed, ignoring how ridiculous that sounded. "What do you need from me?"

Rose looked up at her father with a tired half smile, "Coffee and ability to yell at people to get us books."

"Done," Pete answered. "Keep me posted."

For the next four days they didn't leave that room beyond restroom runs. The meeting room was a complete disaster area to look at. There were delivery food boxes stacked tall in the corner around what probably was trash can somewhere underneath it all. There were Chinese food boxes, pizza boxes, and only God knew what else could possibly be mixed in. Luckily the windows were open allowing for some air to filter through because these three likely didn't smell as pretty either. Books were littering the room as well. Papers and books were strewn on the table, counters, floor, and everywhere else. The whiteboards were covered with words and references that Pete didn't understand.

The reason he was even here was because after four days Rose had finally called him saying they figured it out and needed his approval for the go ahead on this plan. So here he was holding a box of donuts and coffee for all, silently rethinking his strategy as he thought they could probably do with water, a bed, and probably something more solid than junk food. However the minute Jake saw the box of donuts his eyes grew wild and he bolted over to Pete. After being robbed of his gifts, Pete sighed stepping over to the group.

"So start explaining," Pete stated simply.

And so they did. Apparently someone altered the timeline as they saw by making it so Donna never met the Doctor and as a result the Earth was turning into hell once more like some of the worlds Rose had travelled to. They did so using a time beetle, which according to Mickey you can't smash with a hammer as much as you want to because it exists in a state of flux. So they had finally developed a plan for Rose to go to the alternate universe and see what information she could gather. The plan is for Rose to report back to them and find a way to fix the timeline.

"How do you plan on hopping around? Call us and we'll launch you?" Pete asked.

"We may have gotten the transmat devices working," Jake stated hesitantly and Pete looked at him stunned. "Well we think we did. One quick test should make sure but-"

"You're going to do it whether or not I say yes, correct?" Pete mused and Rose just gave him a smile. "Alright fine. So you're going to try and fix this Rose?"

"There's more at risk if I don't," Rose replied simply. "Now that we know what we're against I can probably fix it and use Donna to get a message to the Doctor."

Pete sighed looking at the three, "Fine. You can do it but on one condition."

The three looked at him waiting for some diabolical limitation or even some crazed request.

"Take a shower and sleep on it a bit," Pete grunted before he walked out and the three looked at each other.

Each tentatively sniffed the air and looked around before grimacing.

"Yeah he's right," Mickey commented before they all got up and started to head out.

The first thing Rose did when she got to her flat was hold the sonic screwdriver in her hand that she recovered from her last trip. Rose stepped over to her shelf where all the items she had gathered in her travels sat. Books on the Wolf within, medals and trinkets, and more. Rose stepped forward resting the screwdriver in a spot of open space. Never know when she might need it in the future if she was unsuccessful in finding the Doctor. Rose sighed, time for a nice long bath and then sleep.


	14. Chapter Thirteen

"_So leave that click in my head,_

_And I won't remember the words that you said."_

_- 'Hopeless Wanderer' Mumford and Sons_

After taking a day to rest and recover from the intense research session, Rose made her way to the lab and the dimension cannon. This was going to be the start of her "Donna stalking" for lack of a better word in the new alternate Earth. Rose was quite frankly tired of alternate dimensions and if anyone even began conversing about them she felt like she would hurt them seriously. Waiting for the ready signal from the team, she then took a deep breath before stepping on the platform and looked at the team with a nod.

"Ready?" Jake grinned.

"Allons-y," Rose retorted with a smirk and Mickey groaned.

Before he could comment however Rose was spiraling through the void once more and came tumbling out onto a street. Rose came running out of the alley and sighed as she slowed to a stop gathering her wits about her once more when she heard a voice.

"Blimey! Are you all right? What was that, fireworks or..."

Rose recognized the voice and turned to see Donna. Realizing she must have seen the static discharge that usually came with the void trips, Rose decided to play it off.

"I don't know, I was just," Rose paused trying to come up with the words, "walking along, that's weird."

"You're the one," Donna stated making Rose raise an eyebrow. "Christmas Eve, I met you in town."

"Donna? Isn't it?" Rose replied nonchalantly.

"What was your name?" Donna countered with a nod.

Rose sighed, she always seemed to be asking the tough questions and all Rose wanted to do was get her hands on that damned time beetle which was impossible, "How are you doing? You're looking good. How's things, what have you been up to?"

Donna just looked at Rose annoyed, this wasn't going well, "You're doing it again."

"What?" Rose questioned.

"Looking behind me. People keep on doing that, looking at my back," Donna stated annoyed.

Rose raised an eyebrow at that, "What sort of people?"

"People in the street; strangers. I catch them sometimes, staring at me," Donna explained. "Like they're looking at something and then I get home, and I look, and there's nothing there."

Rose just gave Donna a sad smile as the redhead looked at her back, or tried to at least.

"See? Look, now I'm doing it!" Donna protested loudly.

Rose just paused as she looked at Donna instantly realizing what the Doctor had seen in her as a companion. She was really brilliant as Rose had faintly heard him call Donna during one of the transmissions she had tried to make. She really was. The feistiness that Donna held was quite endearing and Rose could only imagine the hell that she and the Doctor got into. It was so more likely than not that Donna set the Doctor right whenever he started getting into trouble. Looking at the situation as it was, Rose was happy that he found someone like Donna to keep him company; he really needed to have someone to keep an eye on him at times. Now it was time for Rose to return the favor to Donna.

"What are you doing for Christmas?" Rose asked.

"What am I what?" Donna replied confused.

Rose smiled, "Next Christmas, any plans?"

"I don't know, that's ages away. Nothing much I suppose. Why?" Donna asked suspiciously.

"Just... I think you should get out," Rose stated remembering the explosion that would take place then. "You and your family. Don't stay in London, just leave the city."

Donna looked confused, "What for?"

"Nice hotel, Christmas break," Rose insisted.

"Can't afford it," Donna countered.

Rose chuckled, always ignoring what was in front of her Donna, "Well no, you got that raffle ticket."

Donna glared, "How do you know about that?"

_Because I've studied you Donna Noble_, Rose thought to herself. _I know you almost better than myself these days. _Rose sighed at that thought still. They had isolated all the lifelines to Donna, yet didn't quite understand her role just yet. She was so important but how?

"First prize, luxury weekend break. Use it, Donna Noble," Rose stated.

"Why won't you tell me your name?" Donna insisted.

Rose just gave Donna a pointed look and Donna stepped forward giving Rose a look over.

"I think you should leave me alone," Donna stated walking away.

_Oh Donna, I wish it were that easy_. Rose turned and walked off hitting the button for the transmat system to engage and she walked through the void towards the next point she needed to appear in. She had to get working on UNIT.

* * *

Finding UNIT wasn't the hard part, Rose mused as she appeared in a warehouse and immediately had about ten guns trained on her. The hard part was going to be convincing them that she could help. She just played along as the soldiers led her through the warehouse until she was standing before a woman dressed in a military uniform herself. Rose had to smile at the woman who she knew from her own world.

"Captain Magambo," Rose smiled in greeting. "Glad to see you're well despite the circumstances going on."

She narrowed her eyes as she looked at Rose, "I do not know you and what I want to know is who you are and how you got into my secure facility."

Rose just sighed, smile waning slightly as she looked at her, "What I have to say is going to sound strange, but I need you to hear me out. That is all I ask of you."

Captain Magambo paused as she looked Rose over and Rose knew she had the woman on her side to at least listen. How threatening could she look as a little blonde in a jacket? Rose smirked as Magambo nodded at the soldiers behind them to leave until two remained with the women.

"You have ten minutes," she stated.

"I can't tell you who I am, but I can tell you of what is going on," Rose commented. "I need your help to set this world right. The Doctor wasn't meant to die on that Christmas day and because he did this world is changing and going to hell. You know it as well as I do, however I have a plan to fix it and I need your help to do so."

Captain Magambo looked at Rose in disbelief, "How do you expect to do that?"

"I used to travel with him," Rose replied. "I've traveled from a far distance Captain and I know exactly what we need to do in order to fix this. Will you help me?"

"Sit and let's talk," Magambo replied motioning to a chair and Rose smiled.

And so they spoke and an hour later Rose had UNIT on her side to help developing a time machine to help get Donna back to the point where it all changed and was set wrong. Five hours later they had a team to start the development and Rose relaxed in her chair. Finally, they were working to set things in motion. Rose looked at her watch with a sigh before standing. She had another meeting with Donna to do while they worked. Jake had told her that the stars were going out at a faster rate, almost none left in the sky back home anymore and at that moment Rose knew she had to work fast. The end of the world waited for no one no matter how much I had to get done. Rose had an appointment a short time in the future. Time was funny that way.

* * *

Rose hit the transmat device and popped out on the street once more. There was more trash littering the streets and it was dark as she looked around making her sigh. She knew what this timing was; they had researched it extensively with what they could on the Dimension Cannon's timelines. This would be about the time that the ATMOS devices were going off. Rose turned and heard shouting from soldiers shooting at vehicles as well. Rose started walking when she made eye contact with Donna once more.

"Hello," Donna said simply.

"Hello," Rose replied before she nodded towards the walkway she was on.

Donna nodded and stepped over following her down the sidewalk until they reached a park bench where the two of them sat. They looked up at the sky and saw the haze in the air. There was an amicable silence between them but sadly Rose knew it wouldn't last long. There was so much they needed to discuss and so much that they needed to do.

"It's the ATMOS devices. We're lucky it's not so bad here," Rose explained with a sigh. "Britain hasn't got that much petrol. But all over Europe, China, South Africa... they're getting choked by gas."

Donna looked at Rose sadly, "Can anyone stop it?"

Rose nodded remorsefully, "Yeah they're trying right now, this little band of fighters onboard the Sontaran ship. Any second now-"

And as she said it the sky lit up in flame before it finally cleared showing stars in the sky. Rose felt a wave of emotion come across her as she saw those stars. She forgotten how much she had missed the site.

"And that was?" Donna asked.

"That was the Torchwood team: Gwen Cooper, Ianto Jones, they gave their lives," Rose explained before a tear fell down her cheek as she turned to Donna. "And Captain Jack Harness has transported to the Sontaran home world. There's no one left."

_Poor Jack_, Rose thought to herself. She really missed that flamboyant and outrageous man. He was always so wild and crazy in everything that he did that no matter how bad she was feeling he could always make her smile. Even if that meant just randomly dropping his pants for a reaction. Oh that man…

Donna however was looking at Rose strangely, "You're always wearing the same clothes. Why won't you tell me your name?"

"None of this was meant to happen," Rose explained with a small smile. "There was a man. This wonderful man, and he stopped it. The Titanic, the Adipose, the ATMOS, he stopped them all from happening."

"That Doctor?" Donna asked confused.

Rose nodded, "You knew him."

"Did I? When?" Donna questioned even more puzzled than before.

"I think you dream about him sometimes," Rose replied before she smiled as she thought of the man she had been searching for such a long time. "It's a man in a suit. Tall, thin man, great hair. Some really great hair."

"Who are you?" Donna demanded impatiently.

"I was like you. I used to be you," Rose continued. "You've traveled with him Donna. You've traveled with the Doctor in a different world."

Donna shook her head, "I never met him, and he's dead."

"He died underneath the Thames on Christmas Eve, but you were meant to be there. He needed someone to stop him, and that was you," Rose stated. "You made him leave, you saved his life."

Rose watched as Donna zoned out and she knew the redhead was remembering making her sigh. Now was the fight. Rose could only imagine how frightening the images must be; Rose still had nightmares about her times with the Doctor occasionally.

"Stop it!" Donna insisted. "I don't know what you're talking about, leave me alone!"

Rose watched her go before she called, "Something's coming, Donna. Something worse."

Donna glared at Rose angry, "The whole world is stinking. How can anything be worse than this?"

Images flew forward in Rose's mind; the pain, the suffering, the screams that haunted her dreams for months on end. The memories and waves of emotions that spurned at the images of worlds being wiped from existence. There was so much that could be worse and Rose knew it. Rose had lived it. Worlds conquered, suffering as entire galaxies were disappearing at the whim of the darkness, and that evil feeling looming over all of humanity and creation. It was so dark it just ebbed and seeped into everything.

"Trust me. We need the Doctor more than ever," Rose started softly before she continued. "I've been pulled across from a different universe because every single universe is in danger. It's coming Donna; it's coming from across the stars and nothing can stop it."

"What is?" Donna demanded.

Rose started to weaken, "The darkness."

"Well what do you keep telling ME for? What am I supposed to do?" Donna raged on. "I'm nothing special. I mean, I'm... I'm not, I'm nothing special. I'm a temp. I'm not even that, I'm nothing!"

Rose just had to smile at Donna. She had once thought that about herself all those years ago before she had travelled with the Doctor and knew that must be what Donna felt. What she didn't know was the entirety of time was converging around Donna and she was more important than ever.

"Donna Noble," Rose smiled. "You're the most important woman in the whole of creation."

"Oh, don't," Donna sighed. "Just don't. I'm tired, I'm so...tired."

"I need you to come with me," Rose said understanding completely.

Donna shook her head, "Yeah, well, blonde hair might work on the men, but you ain't shifting me lady."

_There's the fight I know_, Rose smiled. "That's more like it."

Donna had to smile back herself as she remarked, "I've got plenty more."

"I know you'll come with me, only when you want to," Rose stated.

"You'll have a long wait then," Donna countered.

Rose sighed, she knew the truth, "Not really, just three weeks. Tell me, does your grandfather still own that telescope?"

"He never lets go of it," Donna answered.

Rose felt the transmat device in her pocket buzz with charge now. She was able to leave now and with that she had one last thing to tell Donna.

"Three weeks' time, but you've got to be certain," Rose answered. "Cause when you come with me, Donna... sorry, so sorry but... you're going to die."

Before Donna could ask, Rose reached in her pocket and engaged the transmat. She had to get back to UNIT. They needed to finish the time machine.

* * *

"It wasn't supposed to be like this," Rose mused softly as she walked in the warehouse amongst the UNIT members whose trust she had somehow managed to gain without even giving her name. _A name can cause paradoxes and unleash new dangers and challenges to getting the job done_, she had been told and learned clear enough in her travels. For weeks they had been trying to develop some sort of technology that shouldn't exist; fueled with the knowledge Rose had accumulated in the time spent with the researchers building the dimension cannon, and information accompanied by guidance from the mysterious beings in her dreams whose existence Rose has held as a closely guarded secret.

This time was different however; the day was not one going to be filled with brainstorm sessions and theories and building something to help fix this damned timeline. Rose had been informed from the commander she was working with that they had found something. As they walked forward and the object came into sight, Rose stopped dead frozen in her tracks. She looked worn and tired, but she was still that beautiful blue box that had changed Rose's life forever with the words from her famous driver of 'did I mention it also travels in time?' Over the next couple years Rose learned that the TARDIS did that and so much more; almost considering that box her home more than the estate where she grew up. She helped Rose save the man she trusted more than any other, and in the same way saved Rose.

"We pulled it from the Thames," Captain Magambo commented, pulling Rose from her thoughts as she took a breath in and started walking forward once more. "She's not powering up much though; probably damaged from the water. Door is locked as well so we can't get in."

Rose stepped forward, resting her hand on the wooden door and smiling at the familiar feel. Without explaining she reached to the chain around her neck, pulling the simple key out as she looked at it. Never did she really think that she would have the opportunity to do this beyond what she dreamt of. Placing the key inside the lock, Rose turned the key and opened the door. Surprised could not even explain the emotion that Captain Magambo was feeling as she watched Rose unlock the TARDIS which responded to her in kind. Inside was a different story. It was cold and dark, not what she was used to as she walked up the familiar ramp to the console. Rose smiled, resting her hand on the case in the center, and Captain Magambo watched stunned as the rota moved ever so slightly in response to Rose's touch.

"Hello old girl," Rose greeted fondly. "It's been so long hasn't it?"

A slight humming filled the air as the TARDIS tired ever so hard to help as just slightly the room lightened. Rose smiled in response and turned to Captain Magambo, "I think this is just what we need to get this job done. Come on. There's work to do."


	15. Chapter Fourteen

"_You brought me out from the cold_

_Now, how I long, how I long to grow old."_

_- 'Hopeless Wanderer' Mumford and Sons_

It had been two weeks since Rose's last meeting with Donna and she knew that in one more week she would finally have Donna come with her. The time machine should be built by that with the TARDIS doing what she could to help. During the nights between working Rose took a few of them to sleep, hiding in the TARDIS and left alone by most of the soldiers. It was the night before Rose was going to go get Donna to bring her back when she fell asleep against one of the coral struts in the TARDIS. As she was falling into slumber, she missed the rota moving slightly as the TARDIS felt something quite familiar moving through the area.

Rose felt a sudden calmness fall over her body and she was able to quickly fall into a slumber where she seemed to awaken in a new location. Rose looked around spinning at the sight. She wasn't in a field meaning she likely wasn't going to be speaking with her Red cohort. She wasn't in a sitting room either as she had been when Azure first approached her. This was something new. Rose moved down through the grass noticing that she was barefoot once more to sit on the edge of the cliff overlooking the waters below as a figure sat beside her in a long gold gown.

"You were the one who healed me after I was shot," Rose stated before Gold had an opportunity to speak. "The doctors commented that there was some healing already taking place when they got me into surgery. So who are you?"

"I am the Gold Guardian," she answered simply. "I have the role of overseeing life and death."

Rose chuckled, "Oh how fitting. I'm surprised to find you in gold rather than black."

Gold scoffed, "Black has a temper and is quite the dramatist. He was the one who took out the Sontaran army in that town where you nearly sacrificed yourself Wolf. Should you meet him he may seem very gruff and angered towards you for making that decision, but it was he in the end who eliminated the threat to save those lives you risked yourself for. He is good, but quite difficult to work with at times. Your Doctor would agree with me there."

"This is insanity," Rose mused.

"Not quite," Gold replied. "I commend you for only telling the few you have of our presence."

Rose sighed, "Not easy keeping this a secret. Motivating others to accomplish a task without any reasoning. The Doctor will at least trust me enough so I won't have to tell him."

"You are so close My Wolf," Gold smiled. "So close that I don't believe you truly understand."

"So we succeed," Rose stated looking Gold in the eye. "When I get Donna tomorrow and we use the TARDIS to power the machine. It will all work?"

Gold just barely nodded her head making Rose sigh in relief, "You've done so well My Wolf and fought so hard; it is all coming to a close so very soon."

"I feel like Donna," Rose said with a soft chuckle, turning to look at the waters below. "I'm so, so tired."

"Soon your rest will come and you will have a reward you did not even think were possible," Gold stated. "You must listen to me Wolf. The reward you shall receive will be what you have searched for all these years. Although it may seem different, inside where it matters it will be all the same. He is the same."

Rose just turned back to Gold, "Not short on the cryptic talk are ya?"

Gold chuckled, "Rest My Wolf. Tomorrow is the day you work with the most important woman to tell the Doctor of danger."

"It's her I've been searching for isn't it?" Rose commented. "Not just the Doctor but we've needed the Doctor and Donna all along? That's where the timelines all converge around her."

"So smart My Wolf. You have made us more proud than I think you could ever imagine," Gold stated before she disappeared where she sat.

Rose sighed and closed her eyes fading into a darkness herself as her body rested peacefully to prepare for what tomorrow would bring. When she awoke it was to a soldier standing at her side shifting on his feet.

"Sorry ma'am," he apologized. "It's time."

Rose nodded and made her way to her feet ensuring she had her transmat in her pocket for when it was time. The soldier made his way out and before Rose left the TARDIS she rested her hand on the main console once more feeling content despite what was to happen.

"Help me one last time old girl," Rose whispered in a plea before she walked out.

Rose and a few soldiers jumped into the truck and started to drive off to where Rose knew Donna would be. To these people it had been months, but for her maybe a week and a half or two here. She had initially shown up and instructed them on how to start to build the time machine; using the transmat device to hop forward to ensure they were doing it correctly. It wasn't until three weeks ago when they found the TARDIS that Rose started staying longer. Something about that machine even if she was slowly dying made Rose feel so comforted. Perhaps the Guardians were right and there was a bit of the wolf left in her. If so, that was fine; Rose could deal.

"Ma'am, we're here," the one driving instructed as he parked the truck.

Rose nodded and made her way out to go meet Donna. As she was walking up the hill towards where she could make out the outline of Donna and Wilfred, she smiled. These soldiers and Captain Magambo respected her and treated her as a superior officer for some reason. Perhaps it was because she had once worked with the Doctor or maybe perhaps it was just her knowledge with what they were about to do. Either way, Rose finally understood why the Doctor acted as he did when it came to the military. The salutes really weren't necessary. It was slightly surprising as well to find that they had such a blind trust. Perhaps it was just a hope that with Rose's help that they could stop the impending destruction that was waiting for them.

Rose stood to the side on the hill, unnoticed by the two who were sitting by a telescope. Rose looked to the stars in the sky, slowly seeing them start to flicker away. At home, there were few left. In some of the worlds where Rose had traveled there were nearly none left at all. Rose watched as Wilfred and Donna noticed the darkness approaching as she had warned and the stars disappearing. Wilfred was such a kind soul, Rose mused to herself as she watched him. Even though he had been through so much he still tried to find pleasure in the small things. However the small things were leaving him as the stars were disappearing. Donna finally turned to Rose and said the words Rose had been waiting for.

"I'm ready," Donna declared.

And so Donna ignored her grandfather's protests and walked over to Rose. Together they approached the UNIT truck and hopped in to make the drive back to the main base. They had a timeline to fix. As they approached the warehouse, Rose subconsciously sat up straighter and let her posture change as well. She was used to having to act proper around others while at Torchwood mainly because of who her father was. With these soldiers it wasn't much different. They got out of the truck and Rose led Donna into the warehouse where the circle of mirrors were hooked up with the monitors nearby. The TARDIS was parked nearby as well with the wires running out of it as power.

_I'm sorry old girl; I'm sure this will likely take what you have left from you,_ Rose thought sadly.

As she approached Captain Magambo, the woman saluted Rose making her groan, "Ma'am."

"I've told you, don't salute," Rose retorted as she moved towards the computer.

Captain Magambo started the same spiel as she usually did, "Well, if you're not going to tell us your name-"

"What you don't know either?" Donna piped up.

Rose sighed as she looked at the readings, "Crossed too many different realities. Trust me, the wrong word in the wrong place can change an entire causal nexus."

Rose's explanation came instinctively. _The readings were good; brilliant! This just may work!_ Granted she already had reassurance from the Guardians, but still, a little positive data did help settle her doubt a bit more than words form a cryptic gold woman.

"She talks like that. A lot. You must be Miss Noble," Captain Magambo commented.

"Donna," was her reply.

"Captain Erisa Magambo. Thank you for doing this."

Donna looked between Rose and the Captain as Rose made her way over, "I don't even know what I'm doing."

Rose smiled as she looked at the two, "Is it awake?"

Magambo shook her head, "Seems to be quiet today. Ticking over like it's waiting."

_Ole girl was waiting to help; she knows_, Rose thought sadly as she looked at the TARDIS before turning to Donna. "D'you want to see it?"

"What's a police box?" Donna retorted.

Rose grinned, "They salvaged it from underneath the Thames. Just go inside."

"What for?" Donna retorted.

"Just go in," Rose replied amused.

She watched as Donna walked over and entered into the TARDIS. As the redhead exclaimed 'No Way!' Rose knew that this was where the redhead belonged; with the TARDIS. Donna walked out and looked around it before she turned back to Rose.

"What d'you think?" Rose asked.

Donna fought for the words before she just asked, "Can I have a coffee?"

Magambo chuckled, "Sure thing."

"Come on," Rose replied. "Let's go inside."

They moved inside of the TARDIS and a soldier brought Donna her coffee before leaving them be. Rose moved around the console room sadly as the memories of her times in here filtered through her head.

"What is it?" Donna asked.

"Time and Relative Dimension in Space," Rose recited. "This room used to shine with light. I think she's dying."

Rose caressed the console once more and the rota slightly moved.

_That's my girl_, Rose chuckled. "Still trying to help."

"And it belonged to the Doctor," Donna stated as she tried to understand.

"He was a Time Lord. Last of his kind," Rose explained.

Donna however looked confused, "But if he was so special, what was he doing with me?"

Rose could only shake her head at all the self-doubt that was kept within Donna, "He thought you were brilliant."

"Don't be stupid," Donna scoffed.

"But you are!" Rose protested with a smile. "It just took the Doctor to show you that, simply by being with him. He did the same to me. To everyone he touches."

Rose tried to ignore the look that Donna gave her; it looked and felt almost like one of pity and Rose didn't need that right now. She needed to stay focus and not focus on the emotion boiling up. This was about Donna.

"Were you and him?" Donna trailed off.

Rose just sighed and neglected to answer. Her mind flung back to a time where she was in tears and the words similar to that were said coming from her mouth of all the things that she thought they were and what could never be. Rose stepped forward and rested her hand on Donna's shoulder looking at the beetle she couldn't touch but knew was there.

"Do you want to see it?" Rose asked softly.

"No," Donna answered instinctively but as Rose continues to look she adds. "Go on, then."

"Come with me then," Rose replied and led Donna out of the TARDIS and into the center of the mirrors.

It was time to show Donna exactly what was effecting the timeline and all of reality. From then there was only one task left to complete: they had to send Donna back in time to make her turn left. Rose knew however that even though it sounded simple that in no way was it going to be. This Donna who she was leading into the circle of mirrors wouldn't exist anymore and she would die. But in that sacrifice she would become someone greater, Rose rationalized in her head. Donna Noble would become the most important woman in all of creation who would safe not only the Doctor but the worlds and universes and reality as a whole. Rose was just the tool to get her to that point and get the job done. A Champion in arms waiting for the warriors to fight the battle and stop the impending darkness before it overtook every living thing in existence.


	16. Chapter Fifteen

"_So when your hope's on fire_

_But you know your desire."_

_- 'Hopeless Wanderer' Mumford and Sons_

Rose guided Donna into the center of the mirrors as she began to explain, "We don't know completely how the TARDIS works, but we've managed to scrape off the surface technology enough to show you the creature."

"It's a creature?" Donna asked.

_That's one word for it_, Rose thought sadly. In the other dimension it took endless hours to try and figure out what the hell this creature was, but now that they thought they had an idea, it was time to let Donna finally see. This creature had changed the course of this universe and Donna's life tremendously. If only they really knew where this whole thing stemmed from, but for now this was going to have to do.

Rose gave her a half smile and a nod, "Just stand here."

"Out of the circle please," Captain Magambo said sternly.

Rose rolled her eyes as she turned muttering, "Yes ma'am."

Rose made her way out of the circle as she heard Donna say panicking, "Can't you stay with me?"

Rose just smiled at Donna in response before turning to the monitors to check the readings with a nod to Magambo. She would really like to be able to take her time on this whole endeavor and work to explain everything in depth to Donna as they continued on, but they were short on time. It was always a rush from one place to another where the end of the universe was involved. So many times in her travels Rose would have loved to stay and take a few hours to rest, but instead she usually found herself pushing through exhaustion to save lives just as they were hoping to do now.

"Ready? And… activate," Magambo ordered.

The lights around the circle turned on and once the readings were stable Rose moved to the outside circle looking at Donna who had her eyes closed.

"Open your eyes Donna," Rose said.

"Is it there?" Donna asked.

Rose nodded although she couldn't see it, "Yeah, open your eyes. Look at it."

"I can't," Donna insisted.

"Donna, it's part of you. Look," Rose replied calmly.

Rose watched as Donna opened her eyes to see the beetle and started moving around to try and get a better look at it panicking_. I am so, so sorry_, Rose mentally apologized to the woman.

"It's okay, it's okay, it's okay; calm down Donna," Rose stated with a soothing tone. "Donna? Donna! Okay."

Donna stopped turning to look at it, "What is it?"

Rose smiled, _well_, "We don't know."

"Oh thanks," Donna retorted sarcastically making Rose snicker.

"We know a bit. It feeds off time, by changing time, by making someone's life take a different turn," Rose explained. "Like, meetings never made, children never born, a life never loved. But with you it's..."

"But I never did anything important," Donna insisted.

_Oh you poor soul_, Rose sighed. "Yeah you did. One day, that thing there made you turn right instead of left."

"When was that?" Donna asked.

"Oh you wouldn't remember. It was the most ordinary day in the world," Rose replied, "but by turning right you never met the Doctor and the whole world changed around you."

"Can you get rid of it?" Donna asked hopefully.

Rose sighed, "No I can't even touch it. Seems to be in a state of flux."

Donna looked at Rose annoyed, "What does that mean?"

"I don't know," Rose retorted with a chuckle. "It's the sort of thing the Doctor would say."

"You liar, you told me I was special!" Donna countered. "But it's not me, it's this thing! I'm just a host!"

"No there's more than that," Rose insisted simply as she tried to find a way to explain to her all that they had discovered about Donna. "The readings we get are strange it's... It's like reality's just bending around you."

"Because of this thing!" Donna shot back.

"No, no! We're getting separate readings from you and they've always been there, since the day you were born," Rose explained.

"This is not relevant to the mission," Captain Magambo insisted.

Rose turned and glared at the woman who instantly sighed and just stepped back. Just because this Donna would cease to exist doesn't mean she didn't deserve to understand how important she was. Sometimes the military really saw humans only as tools to complete a mission and Rose wasn't going to let the Captain do that to Donna who had suffered so much already. Rose turned back to Donna as she continued to explain.

"I thought it was just the Doctor we needed, but it's the both of you," Rose stated. "The Doctor and Donna Noble, together to stop the stars from going out."

"Why, what can I do?" Donna insisted before she shook her head. "Turn it off, please."

"Captain," Rose replied and the lights turned off.

Rose moved into the circle and stepped beside Donna as she rested a hand on her arm hoping to comfort the redhead in some way.

"It's still there though. What can I do to get rid of it?" Donna asked.

Rose smiled, "You're going to travel in time."

Donna looked at Rose incredulously before she nodded, "So what do I have to do?"

Rose smiled and led Donna outside of the circle of mirrors over to the side, "We're going to have to get you suited up."

The next fifteen minutes were spent gathering the materials for the jerry-rigged time machine that Rose had helped them build. If only the Doctor could see how far she had come from that girl in the shop to someone with enough knowledge of engineering and space and time physics to help build a dimension cannon and now a time machine. Rose shook her head from those thoughts, _focus_. Finally as they were starting to get Donna suited up in the coat with wires that would launch her through time Rose started to explain.

"The TARDIS has tracked down the moment of intervention. Monday the 25th, one minute past ten in the morning," Rose explained in a matter of fact tone. "Your car was on Little Sutton Street leading to the Ealing Road, but you turned right heading towards Griffin's Parade. You need to turn left. That's the most important thing. You've got to go back, turn left. Have you got that Donna? One minute past ten, make yourself turn left, heading for Chiswick Highroad."

Captain Magambo spoke up then, "Keep the jacket on at all times; it's insulation against temporal feedback."

The Captain then nodded to a soldier who handed her a cup as another fastened a watch on Donna's wrist.

"This will correspond to local time wherever you land and this is to combat dehydration," she stated, handing Donna the water.

"You ready?" Rose asked simply.

Donna hesitated before she drank the water, "Ready as I will ever be."

"Then let's get to it," Rose smiled.

They made their way back to the circle of mirrors where Rose sighed. This had to work because if not then they had nothing left.

"This is where we leave you," Rose told Donna simply.

"I don't want to see that thing on my back," Donna declared.

"No! The mirrors are just incidental," Rose retorted as she explained. "They bounce chronon energy back into the center which we control and decide the destination."

Donna just looked at Rose incredulously, "It's a time machine."

Rose couldn't help the grin, "It's a time machine."

"If you could?" Captain Magambo requested and Donna made her way to the center of the mirrors. "Powering up."

"How d'you know it's gonna work?" Donna asked.

"Oh, yeah," Rose said with a half grin. "We, we don't. We're just... we're just guessing."

"Yeah? Oh brilliant," Donna said with a half chuckle.

"Just remember, when you get to the junction, change the car's direction by one minute past ten," Rose reminded.

"How do I do that?" Donna asked.

Rose just shrugged, "It's up to you."

"Well I just have to," Donna said pausing in thought before she nodded. "Run up to myself and have a good argument."

_Oh the imagery_, Rose thought with a laugh. "I'd like to see that."

Captain Magambo then turned to her team, "Activate loadstone."

"Good luck," Rose offered Donna.

"I'm ready," Donna confirmed.

Rose nodded, "One minute past ten."

"Cause I understand now. You said I was going to die, but you mean this whole world; it's gonna blink out of existence," Donna stated. "But that's not dying because a better world takes its place. The Doctor's world and I'm still alive. That's right isn't it? I don't die? If I change things I don't die? That's... that's right isn't it?"

Rose swallowed hard at the assurance that Donna was trying to seek from her but Rose knew she couldn't lie; Donna had to be prepared to do what she needed to do, "I'm sorry."

"But I can't die!" Donna insisted. "I've got a future! With the Doctor! You told me!"

"Activate," Magambo stated and Rose watched as sparks flew.

White light erupted from the circle and before their eyes Donna disappeared. Rose let out a sigh as her body sagged ever so slightly. It was time. Rose turned to Magambo and the soldiers with a slight nod.

"Thank you for all that you've done. You won't remember but you just helped save millions of people," Rose stated simply as her hand reached in her pocket containing the transmat. "Thank you."

Before their eyes Rose disappeared. When Rose reappeared she was on a street corner waiting for what she knew was going to happen. Rose pulled out her cell phone calling Jake as she looked at the time.

"Three minutes, pull me," Rose stated.

Once she received confirmation, Rose started moving through the streets until she saw alternate Donna pause on the sidewalk in realization. Rose swallowed back the emotion as she saw her jump in front of the truck in order to cause the backup that would end up shifting reality back to how it was supposed to be. This Donna would die and all would be okay. It was time. Rose walked forward slowly to stand next to where Donna lay on the ground slowly fading. She leaned over to look Donna in the eyes with compassion and thanks as Donna gave her back a complete look of understanding with the pain.

"Tell him this," Rose stated and Donna looked attentively despite her fading body. "Two words."

Rose leaned forward and whispered in Donna's ear just before the woman faded. The last words Rose spoke before she felt herself get pulled away as well.

Bad Wolf.

As Rose found herself being pulled back into the void she felt this trip was a little different as she almost heard the faint sound of a wolf's call, howling. The Guardians had mentioned that they had referred to the void as the Howling before. Perhaps it was time that the void was welcoming home the warrior for them; the howling was reclaiming the wolf for one of the last few times because this next trip would be the last. It would soon be time for the Wolf to don her armor and the universe needed to prepare as it seemed the silent question floating around in the void as Rose finally popped out was still lingering:

_Who's afraid of the big bad wolf?_


	17. Chapter Sixteen

"_Don't hold a glass over the flame,_

_Don't let your heart grow cold."_

_- 'Hopeless Wanderer' Mumford and Sons_

Rose appeared once more in the lab but rather than doing her customary check in she immediately went to the monitors where they were checking the timelines. They watched as they all started shifting and going crazy before falling in line once more with where they should be. Jake rested a hand on her shoulder with a smile that conveyed the simple message of _you did it_. Rose just sighed in relief as she turned into the hand and let Jake pull her into a hug. That had been one hell of a trip and Rose felt like she could sleep for a year. While it hadn't been nearly as long as it could have been, Rose had been gone weeks and that was still quite some time for her. She just wanted a nice hot bubble bath and a sleeping pill.

"What's the plan now?" Jake asked.

"Sleep," Rose replied with a sigh as she stepped back from him. "I need to spend a day or so with my mum and Tony before I do anything."

Jake looked Rose over and instantly he knew, "This next one is going to be it isn't it? The final hop to stop this whole madness?"

Rose didn't answer but Jake knew he was right. He turned as Mickey walked over for his welcome back hug as well. The next few days were going to be very tense for everyone involved. As Rose separated from Mickey she just sighed as they started walking away from the platform to find Pete and tell him the good news. Three hours later Rose was at her flat changing out of her clothes and taking a shower before she would spend the next three days at the Tyler Mansion. The hot water helped to calm tense muscles, but Rose's mind was still racing with what she would soon be facing.

She knew that her last encounter with the Guardians had been her last. Gold's words were enough of an indication of that which meant that in all likelihood now that she set the world back on track and passed on the message of Bad Wolf to the Doctor that this was finally time to go to war. Rose packed a bag of clothes and other things she may need before she got in her car and drove off to the mansion. Parking her car she sat in the seat for a few minutes, eyes closed as she leaned her head back. A year of traveling and fighting all was boiling down to what would be her next official hop. Rose had no idea what finding the Doctor would be like and she couldn't even imagine it after all these years. It had been so long since she had seen him…

Sighing she got out of her car and made her way inside. She found her mother in the sitting room watching television with Tony presumably napping upstairs. Rose silently dropped her bag and moved over to the sofa where she curled up on the open section, moving to rest her head in Jackie's lap as she closed her eyes. Jackie said nothing, sensing that was exactly what Rose needed and instead just stroked her daughter's hair comfortingly as Rose started to thaw from her last trip. Rose wasn't even aware of when she had eventually fallen asleep until she woke up to find her mother's lap replaced with a pillow. Blinking a few times, her eyes focused to find a familiar two, nearly three, year old beaming down at her.

"Wose!" Tony grinned loudly in delight.

Rose reached out and snagged him up into her arms to hold him against her as he giggled, relaxing in her embrace, "You're stuck with me minion."

Tony giggled on, "No Wose! Food!"

"What if I eat you instead?" Rose offered and Tony squealed as he tried to get away from her.

"Tony, I told you to wake her up nicely," Jackie chided with a sigh as she walked in and Tony just laughed as Rose let him go.

He took off towards the dining area and Rose slowly sat up looking at her mom, "How long was I out?"

"Five hours," Jackie answered simply. "Come on, let's get some food in ya and then you can get some more sleep."

Rose clambered to her feet and followed her mother to the dining room where she tiredly managed to at least eat something before the food was cleared once more and Rose was off towards the back porch where she sat out looking up at the nearly black sky. Jackie stepped out moving to sit beside her daughter as she also looked up.

"More of the stars are gone," Jackie mused.

"We'll get em back," Rose replied.

Jackie nodded, "I know you will."

Silence fell over the two as Rose tried to find the words to say to her mother and Jackie tried to respect that Rose has something to tell her. Jackie had spent the better part of the past year stressed in more ways than she had ever been while Rose was traveling with the Doctor. When Rose would come back with another ding, cut, scrape, or damn near death, Jackie swore another year was taken from her. Pete didn't say much about the project overall, choosing to keep the small details from her to protect her, but Jackie knew enough. Something was different this time about the trip that had taken her daughter from her for a few weeks rather than the usual three days or so. This one had been so very different.

"I'm making my final trip in a couple days," Rose stated simply, finally breaking the silence. "Managed to fix everything up these past few days and this next hop should be my last to find the Doctor. Stars should be coming back."

"Well that's good isn't it?" Jackie replied with a sigh. "Get to see that twig of a man and save the universe once more."

"You can't come after me mum," Rose said firmly turning to look at her. "No matter how close the darkness gets, no matter how long I'm gone, and no matter what the team sees in the timelines you can't come after me. I won't risk you getting hurt."

"Rose," Jackie began and Rose shook her head.

"Promise me," Rose cut her off.

Jackie looked at her daughter who looked as though she aged so much over the past few years and in that moment Jackie knew that Rose was no longer that innocent little girl she remembered. She was a grown woman who had seen far too much in her life already and made far too many sacrifices.

"I promise," Jackie answered.

Rose nodded and relaxed back against the chair, "So when exactly did Tony get so big and start babbling?"

Jackie smiled, "Must've been about three months ago."

Rose groaned as she realized what she had missed and Jackie began to tell Rose the stories of what Tony had gotten into over the past few months while she was gone. It was slightly sad to hear what she was missing, but it was also relaxing at the same time for Rose to realize that even though she was going through hell and fighting unseen demons and horrors that life was still going on for many. In the end Rose cared for everyone of course, but even if she only managed to save the two worlds which she considered home then that was all that mattered to her. She just wanted her family and those she cared for safe. As Jackie told Rose of how she had walked into the kitchen last week to find Tony completely covered in chocolate sauce Rose had to laugh. She definitely made the right decision in spending her last few days here.

Over the next couple days Rose played endlessly with Tony, acted as though everything was alright with her mother, and just took in what she could. She told Tony wild stories of animals and aliens and fierce warriors that made his eyes open wide in wonder before he would begin running around and playing as the next great warrior to save the world. Rose also sat and had plenty of time for tea with her mother as they caught up on various people's lives that Rose knew outside of work and help plan Pete's upcoming birthday. On her last night before the hop she would make in the morning Rose stood outside once more looking at the sky. Rose watched as more stars started disappearing; the darkness was looming in faster and faster and it was almost vertigo inducing to watch.

"You think you'll find him?" Jackie asked stepping beside Rose.

"Yeah, I do," Rose answered.

"Will you come back?" Jackie questioned.

Rose had no answer for that. Her main objective was to get to the Doctor and explain everything that was going on with the impending darkness, collapsing realities, and more. She still had no idea what was causing it, but for some reason she thought that when she found him that they would definitely find out sooner rather than later which usually meant two things: running for her life or fighting for it. Either way it would be some time before Rose even had the moment to consider what would happen. If she found the Doctor would she stay though? _Depends how that sentence on that beach was meant to end…_

"I don't know," Rose answered finally, completely honest as she looked at her mother. "I don't even know what will happen once I make this hop but I just have to do it. I just have to believe that whatever happens was what was meant to be."

Jackie nodded as she looked at her daughter, reaching over to tuck some of her blonde hair behind her ear, "Whatever happens, just don't come back to me broken again. Save the world but take care of yourself."

"I won't come back broken, I promise," Rose replied, a promise that both knew wasn't completely true.

Rose went to bed that night slightly discontent at what lay ahead for her in the upcoming days. After tossing and turning for a few hours she finally fell asleep silently hoping that her warning of Bad Wolf had gotten through to the Doctor and that he was ready for the upcoming battle.


	18. Chapter Seventeen

"_I will call you by name,_

_I will share your road."_

_- 'Hopeless Wanderer' Mumford and Sons_

Rose was armed with a gun this time as she stood in the room with the dimension cannon and this time the room was silent beyond the people moving around. They had just finished sorting out the issue with the alternate earth and knew that now things were getting serious. Timelines were continuing to converge from what they were seeing around Donna Noble and it was time; all the stars were gone and Rose had passed on the message to Donna of _Bad Wolf _which meant that hopefully the Doctor was aware that something huge was happening. Rose turned to Pete who looked at her slightly concerned along with Mickey and Jake, but she just put on that fake smile for their sakes that she had sadly perfected over the past few months. She was exhausted after everything she had done so far but knew that this was all coming to a close. Last week's visit with one of her Guardian guides left one sentence stuck in her mind:

_You've done so well My Wolf and fought so hard; it is all coming to a close so very soon_.

That one statement meant one result: it was closing time essentially and that usually meant that all hell was about to break loose. Rose looked up as one of the team announced that the cannon was ready. Rose turned to Pete and saw in his eyes what they both knew, it was definitely going to be this one. No one knew whether or not she would get the walls to seal but still be able to come back or if they'd seal with her on the other side. She nodded to Mickey and Jake and started moving with the large gun when Pete stepped up beside her as she looked at the cannon.

"If I don't make it back-" Rose began softly.

"Your mother and brother know," Pete cut her off looking at her and meeting her eyes. "We all do here and know what may happen. I also know where the letters are."

"You can't let her come through to get me should something happen," Rose insisted looking Pete in the eye. "Promise me you won't let anyone come after me until this is sorted. I won't have mum coming through and getting hurt."

Pete looked at his daughter before he sighed nodding, "Promise."

Rose nodded, "Alright. See you soon."

Pete just gave her a tight smile knowing this time there was no clock on when they would be calling her back. It was all her on this one. Rose stepped on the cannon and the launch began. Appearing in a zap of lightning she barely had time to get her feet situated in the bright sunlight before a large shift happened sending her to her knees as she looked up. There was no sunlight anymore and it was dark. Screams filled the air and Rose moved out onto the residential street looking up amidst the panic. Looking around and seeing everyone looking up, Rose did as well, properly this time and can't even admit she's surprised.

The stars have been disappearing and now looking in the sky she saw a number of planets floating around close in various shapes and colors. Definitely enough to spurn the panic in the streets that's for sure. Rose just sighed as she stared at the impossibility in the sky. _Impossible_, she really should stop using that word. The darkness had claimed so many planets and starts and now for some reason there were a number of them in the skies above her. It was almost anti-climactic that Rose couldn't even genuinely feel surprised about it after everything she had seen.

"Right, now we're in trouble," she commented quietly to herself as she cocked and readied her gun. "It's only just beginning."

Timelines were all converging and now she was able to finally see why. All hell was about to break loose and it looked like she was going to be here for the party. Rose had to at least fight back a grin; if hell is breaking loose like this then she knew that one other person was going to have to be here for it: the Doctor. Now it was time to figure out what or who had decided to move the earth and these planets and why. Rose turned around ignoring the panicking milkman who looked as though he was about to either wet himself or potentially scream like a child as she moved towards the heart of the town. She needed to find a computer and see what the hell was going on. Nothing was ever good when there were random planets floating around the sky.

Using alleyways and side streets Rose groaned at the amount of panic filling the streets. She had enough of chaos yet it seemed to completely surround her in life. People seemed to have three ways of coping with impending doom, Rose had learned. Each one was just as irritating as the other and Rose just wanted to lock everyone up to keep them out of her way. The first was what she was witnessing as she passed a number of families: complete and utter despair usually accompanied with an enormous torrential downpour of tears. Rose was all cried out at the moment and until this mission was complete she didn't know if she could even cry. _I might cry when I see him,_ Rose mused mentally. The sheer exhaustion she would feel and relief upon seeing that blue beauty and those pinstripes again would probably overwhelm her completely. Who really knew what would happen?

She watched as the families ran to seek shelter in their houses as though that would protect them from impending doom, but Rose wasn't the one who would diminish those thoughts. It kept them out of their way and was likely safer, at least marginally so. Rose continued moving on down the street when she saw the second response: alcohol induced hysteria. She watched as people stumbled around completely hammered and yelling on the top of their lungs. Apparently this was a common coping method and led to the happy drunks relishing in the surprise and wonder of a bunch of planets in the sky that had them screaming and hollering. The depressed drunks were running around screaming about the end of days and Armageddon. The fact that people were resorting to alcohol to dull their emotions always seemed to sadden Rose who could only smile softly as she passed some until a drunk man turned to her.

"The end of the world darlin! End of the stinkin' world!" He slurred as he stumbled around with a beer bottle in hand.

Rose could only shake her head as she smiled at him, "Have one on me, mate."

As he stumbled off, Rose kept walking through the hordes of people when she heard the third and last type of coping: the opportunists. She heard some kids break through a glass door into an electronics store and sighed as they started to loot it. Opportunists it seemed thought that if the world was ending they could try and get stuff in the time they had left in case they wanted or needed it later. Rose shook her head once more and moved forward into the store as she spoke loudly.

"Right you two! You can put that stuff down, or run for your lives," Rose offered but they didn't move so she instead rolled her eyes and cocked her gun. "D'you like my gun?"

That sent them away running for sure. Rose sighed as she moved into the store where she saw a computer on. It only took her a bit of maneuvering and hacking, but as she worked Rose was silently thankful for all that Jake managed to teach her before she started making her hops. She managed to mess with a bit of passwords and encryptions before finally the screen was showing her exactly what she needed. Looking at the screen, she was surprised at what it was displaying: twenty-seven planets surrounding earth but something more. Rose looked closer as she saw a giant space ship followed by what looked like a lot more objects heading directly towards earth.

"Oh great," Rose muttered.

Rose heard movement in the sky and knew it is just a matter of time before the chaos grew even more severe down here. Staring at the computer, she can't help that feeling of dread settling in her stomach as a message starts to be played through the airwaves. She knew exactly what she was dealing with before they even finish the first word and Rose just wanted to throw up. The familiar electronic sounding staccato piercing the air in harsh tones and rising inflection as the voice chanted 'exterminate' made Rose's blood run cold as memories flew forward of the past where she had encountered these demons as she had deemed them.

_No, demon is too kind of a word for these beings_, Rose thought in disgust.

Making a decision to do what she always did when faced by evil forces hell-bent on destroying the place she considered home, Rose stood and walked out of the store determined. She started making her way down the road with the goal in mind of finding assistance from likely some of the only people who could help her at this time. In the air the raspy, graveled voice still filled the air calling the command of extermination; uneven and unnatural in its very existence as though the syllables themselves were meant to instill the fear and loathing that emanated from every fiber of Rose's being. As a Dalek ship swooped around overhead, shooting at the streets and causing explosions around her, Rose didn't flinch nor falter. She did not make it this far to simply be intimidated by giant trash bins with lasers. She had a job to do.

First things first, she had to find someone who could help her find the Doctor. Rose immediately stopped. Timelines were converging around one person in particular: Donna Noble. Rose filtered through her memories of the alternate universe where she had gotten to know Donna very extensively and remembered where her family had lived initially before all hell broke loose. Her grandfather and mother were around and Wilfred was an individual Rose definitely remembered. _A great soul,_ Rose mused. If anyone would be making a stand and not putting up with the Daleks it would surely be him and as a result of that she needed to get moving. Traveling across town was hell, especially amongst the chaos of dodging Daleks. Rose was nearly snagged but a few blown up Daleks later she was moving as fast as she could. There were only so many Daleks that could be killed before someone took notice and followed her trail. Rose finally turned on a street corner when she heard a Dalek speak aloud to someone.

"Halt! You will come with me!" The Dalek ordered.

_Not while I'm here,_ Rose thought in reply.

"Will I 'eck!" a familiar elder male voice answered and Rose smiled at that.

_Good ole Wilf! _She turned the corner as Wilf shot a paint-gun at the Dalek to impair his sight but Rose knew these Daleks were smarter than that. They had defenses now in ways that surpassed those that she had faced that had led to her becoming Bad Wolf. She had to stop this before they got any further and potentially ruined everything she had worked for. Running closer she heard the Dalek inform Wilf that his vision was not impaired causing Sylvia to panic.

"I warned you, Dad!" Sylvia protested.

"Hostility will not be tolerated! Exterminate! Exterminate! Exter-"

_Oh enough already!_ Rose screamed mentally as she got close enough to fire her weapon. The Dalek crumbled as its top half exploded leaving only bits and pieces. _Much better,_ she mused to herself before she moved over towards Wilf and Sylvia. She lowered the gun just slightly looking at the stunned woman before turning to Wilf.

"D'you wanna swap?" Wilf asked wide eyed and that calmed Rose almost immediately.

Rose smiled at him in response, "You're Donna Noble's family, right?"

Wilf nodded and Sylvia looked hesitant but that nod made Rose let out a sigh of relief; no alternate world any longer, she thought as she looked at the two. It was time for this, even after months and months of not saying this but to finally tell someone… Rose knew that this was finally it; the final showdown.

"I'm Rose Tyler and I need you."

"Anything!" Wilf replied simply.

"Thank you," Rose chuckled. "First we need to get indoors."

Rose followed the two as they led her to their house where immediately they locked the door. Upon hearing the words I need you they had taken her in. The extent of humanity and humility still astounded Rose after all her travels at times. Sensing that this wasn't a topic of conversation she would particularly like to hear, Sylvia disappeared to make tea as Rose followed Wilf into the sitting room. Rose mused that Wilf was acting as though he knew exactly what was going on which would make her life easier. Sighing as she set her gun down against the table she turned to Wilf looking hopeful.

"So you know about Donna traveling with the Doctor yeah?" Rose asked.

Wilf nodded, "Course. Fine bloke that man."

"Have you heard at all from Donna?" Rose asked. "Any idea where she could be?"

"Yeah I've tried calling her, but I can't get through! But she's still with the Doctor, I know that much and the last time she phoned, it-it was from a planet called Midnight, made of diamonds!" Wilf replied as he remembered the last time he had spoken with her.

Rose sighed, that was a bit back according to the dimension cannon's timeline she had studied before coming here. Her disappointment seemed to show on her face as Wilf sighed realizing as well that it had been some time ago. She and the Doctor could be just about anywhere now. Rose was about to speak in reply when Sylvia came in setting down the tea looking angry and annoyed.

"What the hell are you two on about?" Sylvia demanded.

Wilf turned to his daughter desperately, "Look, she's out there, sweetheart. Your daughter. She's travelling the stars, with that Doctor, she has always been!"

Sylvia looked more skeptical than ever making Rose sigh, "Don't be ridiculous."

"Oh come on, open your eyes! Look at the sky! Look at - look at the Daleks! You can't start denying things now!" Wilf insisted.

Sylvia watched her dad as though he was a lunatic and if he was such what did that make Rose, but Rose didn't care at all as she moved towards the window commenting to the two, "You're my last hope. If we can't find Donna, can't find the Doctor…"

Images of the chaos and hell that would result filter through her mind as fresh as the day of her first set of nightmares courtesy of the Guardians. She had come so far and done so much. She had saved lives and worlds, fought enemies, and done so much more. Was it too much to ask to find the Doctor on a silver platter after having gone through hell literally to get here? She was just so bloody tired and wanted to sleep for a millennia but the Daleks had other plans. At least Rose now knew what force could be so evil and dark to bring the impending darkness upon all of reality. She just bit back the despair and focused once more on the task at hand as she looked up at the sky frustrated.

"Where is he?" Rose asked softly.


	19. Chapter Eighteen

**A/N: Thank you to all who have been following this story. I had actually wrote this as my project for NaNoWriMo this past year and had no idea whether or not I should even have posted it. This is the last actual chapter before I post an epilogue which will then bring this story to a close. Thanks again for all your support; I really appreciate the feedback as this was my first attempt ever at writing Doctor Who. Enjoy the weekend! -Invictus**

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"_But hold me fast, hold me fast,_

_Cause I'm a hopeless wanderer._

_And hold me fast, hold me fast,_

_Cause I'm a hopeless wanderer.'_

_- 'Hopeless Wanderer' Mumford and Sons_

Daleks continued to land and blow things up until the entirety of humanity was sedated in pure panic it seemed. Rose watched through the window as families huddled for safety and ran into strangers' houses seeking shelter and some semblance of protection. She had seen it before in other universes. The one where she had almost died, the most war torn she'd seen in a long time, was a primary example of humanity despite it all. After she had helped that child the family took her in and offered her as much safety and protection as a human family could. Now Rose found herself in that same situation. She was seeking shelter with a family until she could possibly find a way to solve this problem who likely had no means of protecting themselves.

She moved to the back to sit at the table as she watched Wilf comfort his daughter Sylvia. The Daleks continued to scream Exterminate in the night outside which continues to send Sylvia into hysterics as she sobbed. At that moment Rose wondered, _what's left_. She found the right place, but damn these Daleks. Rose looked away from where Sylvia was sitting upset and tried to ignore the fact that it's probably a bit of a mother wondering about her daughter. Rose just shook her head. She knows that time moves slower here so god knows how long it's been in Pete's World. Knowing this was her final hop to stop the darkness was likely driving Jackie crazy. Rose just silently hoped that Pete kept his word and kept her mother away. The idea of her mother going into a Dalek invasion was horrifying to Rose. She sighed once more and then paused as the transmission over all airwaves changed and Rose turned at the new message even more depressed if possible.

"You will obey Dalek instructions without question," the voice chanted through the air until finally it cut off confusing Rose.

She sat up straight as the computer on the desk beeped and a new voice filled the air, "Can anyone hear me? The Subwave Network is open. You should be able to hear my voice… Is there anyone there?"

Rose jumped up from the chair looking at the computer confused, "I know that voice."

_How do I know that voice? _Opening the computer the three gathered around as the screen was just a bunch of fuzz. Finally a picture came through and Rose's eyes widened. Harriet Jones!

"Oh thank god," Rose whispered.

"This message is of the utmost importance. We haven't much time… can anyone hear me?" Harriet asked through the computer.

Rose listened as Harriet swore at Jack and her heart skipped a beat. _Jack is alive… Oh god he's alive_. Rose's heart sped up as she Harriet pushes through some sort of code and images of Jack and Sara Jane appear on the screen as well.

"Harriet! It's me, it's me. Oh, she can't hear me," Rose groaned aloud before she turned to Wilf. "Have you got a webcam?"

Wilf shook his head nodding to Sylvia, "No, she wouldn't let me, she said they're naughty."

Rose turned back to the screen smiling at the images despite the fact she couldn't talk, "I can't speak to her then, can I?"

Unable to speak or converse with them all Rose along with Wilf and Sylvia watched as the information began to flow forth. Rose looked at the supposed companion Martha and immediate sized her up in her military uniform that screamed soldier. She shook her head frustrated, but as Harriet explained that they all needed to find a way to call the Doctor her attention focused once more to the task at hand. As the plan began to unfold Rose felt her gut clench. They were going to call the Doctor and bring him to them all, but Rose knew that this wouldn't end well. The Doctor for their lives, but with the possibility of saving everyone else's lives on the planets surrounding? Rose spun around to the table where she grabbed her phone dialing the number saved in there as it had been for years.

If the whole world calling the Doctor didn't work, Rose had no idea what would do the trick. Everything over the past year hinged on this one moment and Rose could nearly cry as she heard Harriet talking about transferring the Subwave Network over to Jack at Torchwood. She watched as Harriet's line cut out and wondered just how many more people would die in all universes alike before they stopped the Daleks and the cracks from spreading. Rose ran over to the computer when she heard the Doctor's voice fill the air once more. They had him. A tear fell down her face as he spoke the words: _Everyone except Rose._

"He's looking for you too! See!" Wilf told Rose as he lightly hit her on the shoulder.

Rose appreciated his attempt to console her even though they were in dire conditions; if a Dalek invasion could even be simplified as that. She had come further than Wilf knew and realized but he was right. The Doctor was still looking for her too. Her warning of Bad Wolf had apparently reached the Doctor and he was looking for her. Seeing him was finally a reasonable possibility and that alone made every scar, every stitch, every cold night on the street, every tear, all of it… all of it was worth it because she would see her Doctor and together their band of fighters would stop the darkness and bring back the light.

That calm relaxing feeling whenever she was with the Guardians fell over her and Rose finally began to question what this had all been despite the hope that she briefly allowed herself to feel. Had they really brought her all here just to have this feed cut out? Did they bring her on this quest to set Donna's timeline just right so that these events would be set in motion? Were the Guardians really using her as a pawn just to help the Doctor find Earth? She hoped and prayed that her initial dream was right, that she'd see the Doctor again but now as the conversation continued on she began to doubt the likelihood of him finding her over these others.

She heard the fear in the Doctor's voice as she spoke to the voice across the airwaves and closed her eyes momentarily. She didn't care what the Guardian's mission for her was and what their plan was overall. She came here to find her Doctor and she was not going to leave without him. The minute she heard the Doctor say the word 'Bye!' in his crazed tone Rose knew that he was going to come hurtling to the place which he saw as safety and shelter, containing the people he cared most about if that conference call was an indication of anything: Earth. Rose scrambled over to her gun, slinging it over head once more in case she had to face off against any more Daleks along the way. Once situated she pulled out her phone making the necessary call to get her where she needed to be.

"Control I need another shift. Lock me onto the TARDIS, now," Rose said firmly as she stood ready, looking at Wilfred and Sylvia hoping her expression even slightly conveyed her gratitude as her heart continued to race at the possibility of after searching for so long being able to finally see him again. "Right, I'm gonna find him. Wish me luck."

"Oh, good luck!" Sylvia replied as Wilf looked at Rose fondly stating, "Yeah good luck sweetheart!"

However, before she can truly convey to them all she is thankful for she felt the tug and the pull from deep inside her gut, fighting off the sickness in her stomach, relishing in the ice cold feeling sinking through her clothes and skin to her bones, and fighting her way through the expansive void as she feels where she's supposed to go; pushing towards that opening and running out as the gap appeared. Rose ran, slowing to a walk in the middle of a street in London once more, spinning around desperately hoping to find that beautiful blue box before her but instead finds nothing. It can't be, she was so close.

_Keep looking, they said it was time_, Rose reminded herself, calling upon the words of the ones who had pushed her to make this journey to begin with. Rose took a deep breath as she tried to gather the strength once more as her skin tingled in anticipation of finally seeing the Doctor once more. She was tired; who wouldn't be after months of endless searching and fighting and pain and misery and loss? But she knew she had to keep going because if she didn't succeed who would? With that Rose put one foot in front of the other as she walked down the road. There were burned out cars everywhere, abandoned debris everywhere. She shook her head at the remnants of someone's groceries which were dropped on the ground probably as the earth was moved.

Seeing it was a dead end she made to turn right, cutting onto the sidewalk briefly before wrinkling her nose at the trash littering the sidewalk from people being taken by the Dalek fleet once more. Silence filled the air and in her travels she knew that silence was always a bad thing. _Keep moving_. Stepping back into the street, she rounded a car and willed herself to keep her head up and ignore the tiredness seeping into her muscles. She started walking down the road and finally looked up, slowing in her step as she saw what might be regarded as the most beautiful thing she had seen in her life.

Fourteen months, countless parallel worlds, countless injuries, heart break after heart break, and it was all going to be worth it as she saw ahead a blue box in the middle of the road. Rose recognized the flash of red hair on a familiar woman she had worked so hard to protect and help fix the timeline with standing next to an all familiar brown suit. Swallowing hard to keep back the emotion Rose kept walking slowly smiling as she saw his head turn to face her. Same old Doctor, hair wild, and stunned expression. This couldn't be true. Fourteen months of hopping on top of the years of separation just made her heart ache and she just barely bit back the sob in her throat before she smiled at him.

As his body turned towards her all thoughts and memories of everything she had been through were wiped from her mind. She did it, she succeeded, and together the 'stuff of legend' would save all of reality from whatever the Daleks were planning but in that moment as they made eye contact she couldn't care at all. Forget the Guardians, forget the stars, forget everyone on this damned planet, she only had one person in mind right now and that one person was the one who mattered to her the most. The only thing pulsing in her head was one word that had changed her life so many years ago and the one command her body was instantly responding to as she burst forward.

The one word that meant so much to her; that one single, solitary word…

_Run_.


	20. Epilogue

**A/N: Thank you to those of you who have followed this story through. Safe to say I ended up having a lot of fun with my first attempt at Doctor Who Fic and my first ever NaNoWriMo. The epilogue sort of plays on an idea that I've had floating around and thought it might be fun to include. Hope you've enjoyed the journey as much as I have and thanks again for reading. ~Invictus**

* * *

"_I will learn, I will learn to love the skies I'm under,_

_I will learn, I will learn to love the skies I'm under,_

_The skies I'm under."_

_- 'Hopeless Wanderer' Mumford and Sons_

It was safe to say that I didn't think my journey would end once more on this damned beach. The past day or so had been a whirlwind of chaos and destruction and even more chaos thrown on top of that when you took into consideration the emotions I had experienced. Pure joy and elation upon seeing my favorite person in pinstripes with that beautiful blue box. Despair upon seeing him shot and agony at the realization that was likely going to change and regenerate. Hesitation when I saw him as he was after that blinding light erupting from his body. Content as ever when we were finally able to hug. He even smelled as I remembered; he smelled of home. I never realized how much a smell or the feel of that perfect hug could make you so happy to the point where I thought that all my nightmares and the horrors of what I had seen were finally chased away.

Acceptance as the Daleks managed to bring in the TARDIS and bring us to their ship. I was to face the beasts once more and I was unafraid after all I had been through. At least I would go out with those I cared about at my side. Panic when Donna was trapped in the TARDIS and loss along with the Doctor when we were told it burned. The events kept going and I found myself experiencing so much on the spectrum of emotion but none that truly made my heart stop as much as seeing my mother there. I had told her not to come yet here she was and in that moment I felt pure dread at the idea of her being stuck here away from Tony. I couldn't even allow myself to imagine that possibility yet that idea horrified me more than any nightmare.

Fortunately that wasn't going to happen. I watched as the Doctor dropped off his companions one at a time; Mickey choosing to stay and leave me which I dare not think about at this moment. He had been my rock for so long and now I watched as he walked off without a care it seemed. I stood looking at the double, the Human-Time Lord Biological Meta-Crisis whatever that meant. He looked the same and that confused me yet for some reason it wasn't even high up there on the scale of weird things I had experienced in my years. By the time I stepped out with my mother and the meta-crisis I smelled the beach before my foot hit the sand. He was going to leave me again it seemed.

I felt betrayed at that fact given the Guardians had told me I would see my Doctor again yet I realized that they hadn't lied; I had seen him again but I just hadn't realized that it wouldn't be permanent. As he refused to say those words again I turned to the double who swore he was the same and he managed to tell me those three words. Hope… For the first time in the countless months since being left in this world I let myself feel true hope. I had wandered so long… a hopeless wanderer as pathetic as it sounds, but as I was finally able to hear those words I felt that emotion that I had been waiting for so long to feel again. I might have a future.

However as I heard the TARDIS beginning to disappear once more I turned and all grew silent around me. I looked to the waves which were frozen in place, the TARDIS half disappeared in the air, the meta-crisis's hand stiff in my own, and the only sound being my own breath in the air. For some reason that calm feeling filtered into my veins and I knew immediately what was happening. Turning to the side I saw for the first time all Six Guardians standing together as one group looking at me; even Black who wasn't my biggest fan. The words filled my head that had been spoken earlier in my travels, _he is the same_. Everything had been building up to this moment where I would be left with his double and they had known it all along.

"Now what?" I asked them, my exhaustion evident in my voice I noticed. "I managed to help save the universe and now I'm supposed to go on here like nothing happened?"

"No," Azure replied simply. "Everything that took place in your travels was meant to be Wolf. You have grown so much stronger from those experiences and you will need that to help him."

"He's the Doctor," I stated looking at them in disbelief.

"Yes," Gold answered. "Yes he is, but in a new form that has never existed before. He's going to need your strength to adapt and fight the darkness."

I sighed as I contemplated their words, specifically one: _fight_. I was so done with fighting and just wanted this to be done with. However that was likely not going to be a possibility from the sounds of it.

I had to ask, "What if I can't fix him? Is that all I'm meant to do now? Try to fix these dark impulses the other one was talking about? That's not fair."

"Life's not meant to be fair sometimes," Black stated with a sneer. "Sometimes the universe needs a Champion to step forward for the sake of everyone else and in this moment it's you. I didn't think you would back down from that sort of obligation _Wolf_."

I couldn't help but glare, "So what? If I don't manage to help him then what happens? The Doctor can't stand to stay in one place and I have a life here. He's even left me multiple times just as he's doing now. You think this one won't once our TARDIS coral grows? It's in his nature to run and you expect me to be able to tether him down here for years until that TARDIS forms?"

Red paused, "For the sake of everyone Wolf, we hope you can heal him."

_For the sake of everyone?_ What the hell does that mean?

"What will happen if I don't?" I asked once more with heat behind my voice.

None of them had an answer for me and I just shook my head as I looked at the hand in my own. I was tired, but one thing I had learned in the past few years was that when there was a fight I shouldn't give up and I wouldn't give up to spite these Guardians. I deserved to live my life as well and maybe he could be a part of that. Maybe I could help him heal and they could have a great life together. With that thought the world around me unfroze and sound filled the air once more. I looked to the left away from the disappearing TARDIS and saw only one Guardian left standing there, Gold. She gave me a grim smile before disappearing leaving me to wonder what would happen should I not succeed. Why were they being so vague?

* * *

"She doesn't know does she? About his past?" Black commented as they stood out of sight watching the scene before them now.

"No," Gold answered.

Black chuckled, "Brilliant. I almost hope she fails so we get to see him once more. I do like a good villain."

White turned to his counterpart with a glare, "What good would that do if the multiverse was once more operating with the Valeyard running around?"

* * *

Standing watching that box disappear, TARDIS coral in his pocket, and Rose Tyler's hand in his own, the meta-crisis's mind was racing. Anger, so much anger coursing through his veins at being abandoned. It would be years before he was able to travel the skies and that was only if the TARDIS managed to adapt to this universe's energy and time vortex. His mind felt as though a piece of it was ripped out as his connection to the TARDIS disappeared with it through the rift. His mind was silent yet racing as though he were still fully a Time Lord. The only main change he felt was the single heart beating within. He would find a way to get back; he didn't deserve this exile and there was no way he would let someone else make that decision for him. The only question was how.

Licking his lips he tasted what was uniquely Rose Tyler: honey and spice and the slight taste of something else… something familiar yet different. He turned to look at her, breathing in deep the scent that was so close to her and in his mind it clicked. A solution to his exile that made him smile. He knew what that element he had tasted was and it was salvation.

Time. Rose Tyler tasted of time…

Somewhere in the deep recesses of his mind he heard a faint howling of a wolf and the meta-crisis grinned. He was going home.


	21. Author's Note

I just wanted to thank everyone who put up with reading my story and give a brief update. I have started working on a follow up to what was alluded to in the Epilogue. The story will be called "The Dark I Know Well" so keep an eye out. I'm about 5K words into it so it should be released soon enough. The story will reference aspects of this story but not be an exclusive sequel so it should be open for anyone who wants to read it. Hope you enjoy!

Thanks again to those who took the time to review: Hell In High Heels, Dreamcatcher49, brikaspoms, artsoccer, Virginia I, jenn008, Forever Awesomer, XXAlmaareaXX, Thegingertardis, Viki219, EmmatheHuman, supernena25, Jane Hawthorn, and MaryMatthesen.

Hope I met your expectations!

~Invictus


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